The Man Who Didn’t Wash His Dishes

By Phyllis Krasilovsky 

Illustrated by Barbara Cooney

Copyright 1950

What can happen when you put off simple tasks day after day?  They turn into monumental problems, as the man in this children’s storybook discovered.

He lived alone in a small, neat house and was always vigilant about housekeeping.   One evening, he was so tired after working all day and fixing his supper that he couldn’t muster up the energy to wash his dishes.  Surely it wouldn’t hurt to save them until the next day.  Unfortunately, the next day didn’t find him with any more energy. 

Day after day, his dishes piled up in his sink and on his countertop; on his furniture and on his floor, until he had no more dishes left.  One would think this would force him to break down and wash his dishes.  But no, the man just started to use soap dishes, ash trays and vases.  Eventually, he used up everything. 

What would he do now?  

What luck!  It started to rain!  What a great idea he had then.  All he had to do was pile his dishes into the back of his truck and set them out in the rain to get clean. 

Fortunately, the man had learned his lesson.  Now, of course, he washes his dishes each night.  Sure, it may take a few extra minutes of work when he is very tired, but now, when finished, he can relax in his chair during the evening and find his bed at night because the dishes are where they belong.  

What I like about this book is not just the lesson on the pitfalls of procrastination, but also the man’s creative solution to a seemingly insurmountable dilemma.  When a challenge seems unsolvable, it can be best to “think outside the box”.  While the conventional solution to a problem may not always be effective, a little ingenuity may be just the thing you need!