Thinking of patience, the first thing I picture is those customers who, in the middle of helping them, say: thank you for being patient. The first time I heard it, it took me by surprise and I didn’t say much back. I did not intend to be patient as much as I was agitating myself with the fastest way to help them, which was to picture what they do, think about the next step, and guide them through. For them, it was all they needed. For me, it was an efficient and pleasant interaction.
I appreciate every time I am being told because at the same time I feel I am struggling a lot with having patience on so many levels: patience to wait for the metro, patience for the sun to come out, patience to listen, patience to understand, patience for things to get somewhere, patience to grow and so on and so forth. Expressed gratitude makes me aware of what patience actually looks like and reminds me of how important it is. While every seen and unseen living thing and every interaction and reaction have a certain way of working and its own rhythm, having patience is useful if you want to align yourself with these rhythms and make things happen.
Good things in life take time and more often than not you need to wait for people to unfold and grow so that they can understand you, for wounds to heal in order to move on, for trust to be built, for education to be absorbed, for the economy and society to improve, for peace to be settled and for dreams to be achieved. The challenging part is to know how to keep your good attitude while waiting, without breaking on the road. One way to do this is by doing those things that get you closer to or prepare you better for the things you are waiting for, while enjoying what you have now.
What if instead of responding to attacks or to mistakes with another attack we would choose to have the patience to ask questions, to understand, and to explain? A minute of patience can bring ten years of peace.
What if instead of consuming our time complaining and blaming others for our iniquities and shortcomings we would choose to have the patience to get things fixed or to change them? Patience, at the very depth, is a value that reflects the state of one’s body and mind and offers a life free of anxiety and resentment.
What if instead of obtaining and demanding more and more at any cost we would have the patience to get there by only doing good deeds? It is patience that helps us make better decisions and brings meaningful results.
It is for him who has the love and the patience that everything becomes possible.
Elena-Iulia 