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DISCOVERIES

This experiment always evokes laughter. We discover that the nondominant hand is quite clumsy. Using it brings us back to what Zen teachers call “beginner’s mind.” Our dominant hand might be forty years old, but the nondominant hand is much younger, perhaps about two or three years old. We have to learn all over again how to hold a fork and how to get it into our mouths without stabbing ourselves. We might begin to brush our teeth very awkwardly with the nondominant hand, and when we aren’t looking our dominant hand will reach out and take the toothbrush or fork away! It is just like a bossy older sister who says, “Hey, you little klutz, let me do it for you!”

Struggling to use the nondominant hand can awaken our compassion for anyone who is clumsy or unskilled, such as a person who has had disabilities, injuries, or a stroke. We briefly see how much we take for granted scores of simple movements that many people cannot make. Using chopsticks with the nondominant hand is a humbling experience. If you want to eat a meal in under an hour and not end up spilling food all over, you have to be very attentive.

DEEPER LESSONS

This task illustrates how strong and unconscious our habits are and how difficult they are to change without awareness and determination. This task helps us bring beginner’s mind to any activity—such as eating—that we do several times a day, often with only partial awareness.

Using the nondominant hand reveals our impatience. It can help us become more flexible and discover that we are never too old to learn new tricks. If we practice using the nondominant hand frequently, over time we can watch our skill develop. I have been practicing using my left hand for several years and I now forget which hand is the “right” hand to use. This could have practical benefits. If I lose the use of my dominant hand, as a number of my relatives did after strokes, I won’t be “left” helpless. When we develop a new skill, we realize that there are many other abilities lying dormant within us. This insight can arouse confidence that, with practice, we can transform ourselves in many ways, moving toward more flexibility and freedom in life. If we are willing to make the effort, over time, we can awaken the skills arising from the natural wisdom within us and let them function in our daily life.

Zen master Suzuki Roshi said, “In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few.” Mindfulness enables us to keep returning to the unlimited possibilities that are always emerging from the great birthing place of the present moment.

Final Words: To bring possibilities into your life, unfold beginner’s mind in all situations.

2

Leave No Trace

The Exercise: Choose one room of your house and for one week try leaving no trace that you’ve used that space. The bathroom or kitchen works best for most people. If you’ve been doing something in that room, cooking a meal or taking a shower, clean up in such a way that you leave no signs that you’ve been there, except perhaps the odor of food or fragrance of soap.

REMINDING YOURSELF

Put a sign in the room you’ve chosen that says, “Leave No Trace.”

In Zen paintings turtles symbolize this practice of leaving no traces, because they sweep the sand with their tails as they creep along, wiping out their footprints. Instead of a written sign, you could also use small pictures of turtles as reminders.

DISCOVERIES

Often, we leave rooms a bit messier than when we entered. We think, “I’ll clean it up later.” Later never comes, until the mess is unbearable, and we become irritated enough to undertake a thorough cleaning. Or we get annoyed at someone else for not doing their part in the housework. How much easier if we take care of things right away. Then we don’t have to feel growing annoyance at the gathering mess.

This task helps us become aware of the tendency to turn away from doing certain things, even small things