JOB SATISFACTION - A SEQUEL

In a recent post of mine, I had mentioned how my boss had told me that there is nothing called "job satisfaction" because job and satisfaction are mutually exclusive.

Coming to think of it, though there is a great deal of truth in what he said, he was not entirely right. It is my experience that I do derive COMPLETE satisfaction from some jobs. I remembered about this when a friend and I were speaking yesterday about helping the significant other in household chores like making the bed, dicing vegetables and setting the table. What I am referring to may not be "jobs" in the conventional sense of the term, but they are tasks nevertheless.

Topping the list of the tasks that give me job satisfaction is pressing clothes. I was twelve when I started ironing my clothes - the khaki uniform of the Boy Scout, to be precise - and to this day, I have not had my clothes pressed by someone else. (This does not include my suits which were sent to the dry cleaners.) I enjoy doing it because while on that job, my mind is without care. The pile of clothes neatly stacked in the cupboard is such a spectacle to watch!

Before the electric iron came, the task involved greater amount of planning. One had to determine the sequence in which the clothes should be ironed: clothes made of thick fabric, the starched ones, those made from thin material, etc. That done, one set fire to the shells of three coconuts (no less, for the iron may get cold earlier than desired, and no more unless you wanted to burn your clothes) and before they got charred, transferred the embers to the chamber of the device. The electric iron has changed all that, but the fun and the satisfaction of the job remain.

The labour involved in laundry-work has been taken away by the washing machine, but the contraption does only half the job. Spreading them neatly on the clothes-stand placed in the balcony to dry in the sun - all the coloured clothes inside out - gives me the kind of joy that a painter or a sculptor or an installation artist would get on viewing his work of art from a distance.

Folding the crisp clothes that have been sun-dried and do not need ironing is an equally pleasurable occupation. While at it, one can hum a tune, plan the activities for the day or the week, or whatever. Once again, the sense of achievement you feel after the task is done makes it worth doing it.

The practice in our house has always been that after a meal, you carry your plate to the sink, run water on it to wash off the food particles and leave the finishing job for the maid. As we do not want to risk the delicate chinaware at the hands of the maid, on days we have guests for dinner, we do the dishes ourselves. That was when I realised that it was indeed a task that gives immense job satisfaction.

After the advent of the dishwasher, the chore has become lighter, but mercifully, stacking the clean plates and vessels, forks and spoons, and ladles and spatulae, needs to be done manually. And that is enjoyable!

Watering the plants, brewing the tea in the morning and the evening, smoothing the wrinkles on the bed sheet and spreading the counterpane, chopping the vegetables and setting the table before every meal are all tasks one can do well and derive job satisfaction from. If you have not done it, try doing that!