There is a tradition on the Mindfulness and Psychotherapy Blog. Every Monday, I cite a quote or a poem that is related to mindfulness and psychotherapy in some way and then explore it a bit and how it is relevant to our lives. For me, quotes and poetry can often sink me into a state of greater understanding. So for today, here is a quote by Mother Teresa:

“We can do no great things – only small things with great love.”

If you haven’t heard this quote before it is a classic and so meaningful to our everyday lives. In essence, this is a quote that can be seen as embodying the essence of humility. However, I think there’s also a different way to see it.

In times of anxiety or depressed mood, a number of unwanted feelings arise and the mind tends to look at the mountain and not see the little steps it takes to get up that mountain. As a result, it seems completely overwhelming to climb the mountain and motivation is sapped immediately leading to inaction which then confirms the depressed mood.

What if we were able to summon this quote when we were feeling overwhelmed to remind us that we don’t have to do a great thing (e.g., cleaning the entire house, working out for a hour, making a gourmet dinner), but instead can break it down to do small things, with great love.

One time I was explaining this to a man I was working with who was an artist. He made pottery. He said, “I don’t understand, when I make the pot I just go ahead a make it. However, I’m not feeling motivated to make pottery lately and so I just don’t do it, I’m such a failure.” As we got into it, we began to break down his work into little things.

He had to decide which clay to buy, get his tools prepared, wedge the clay and then spend time with it shaping it. There were other steps involved too.

I said to him, “what if this didn’t have to be one great act, but small acts with great love?” We thought about being more present with the small steps and not putting so much pressure on the finished project.

As we do in any mindful approach, it’s important to understand how to work with the wandering mind. For this man, his mind did wander onto the finished product and he became overwhelmed at times. He had to notice this when it happened without judgment, come back to his breath, and bring his intention and attention back to just working with this “small thing” with “great love.” While it wasn’t always easy to bring the “great love,” he tried to think of the pleasure others were going to derive from this pot and this helped him at times relax into the moment.

For the rest of us, when our minds are starting to swim with the “mountain,” we can always bring ourselves back to the present by anchoring our attention to our breath or bodies and choose to recalibrate to bringing our awareness to the small things in the moment.

For me, sometimes in the morning my mind begins to swim with all the work I have to do in the day. However, it’s often my job to make breakfast for my family. Thinking of the mountain of work I have, I often get frustrated initially. When I notice this, I come back to focusing on one thing at a time and remember that I am nourishing myself and my family so we can be well in this world and pass that onto others. I even bring the practice of lovingkindness to the process sometimes saying, “May this food support you in being healthy in body and mind.” While this isn’t a panacea, it often changes my experience of making breakfast.  

Note: None of us have to be Mother Teresa to practice this  

What are some other ways you can bring great love to small things?

Please share your thoughts, stories and questions below. Your interactions here literally provide a living wisdom for us all to benefit from.

Elisha Goldstein, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist in private practice in West Los Angeles and is author of the upcoming book The Now Effect, co-author of A Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Workbook, Foreword by Jon Kabat-Zinn, author of the Mindful Solutions at Work App, the Mindful Solutions audio series, and the Mindfulness at Work™ program currently being adopted in multiple multinational corporations. Join Elisha Goldstein's Facebook Community to keep up with important information, tips and events.

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From Psych Central's website:
PsychCentral (November 30, 2009)

    Last reviewed: 30 Nov 2009