Patience is a thing that can sometimes be in short supply. Like love and other mental attributes, patience can be defined to a degree, but not captured in a bottle to be able to be applied like medicine. It must be learned and also, like most things that must be learned, its value is usually larger then the work put in to achieve it.
Virtuous though it is, patience is hard to achieve on a consistent basis. The drone of the modern world can obliterate it, especially in a world where convenience has overtaken quality and appreciation as the top motivators in what people are willing to invest in.
However without it, many situations can appear to be lost causes. Although there are times when patience should definitely run out, there are other times when it is sorely needed and usually on a much more consistent basis.
Like many of the most desirable traits in man’s list of favorable virtues, there are similes in nature that bind this concept to our very core and instinct. There is the patience of the fisherman or the hunter, who must wait for the right moments of opportunity to come along to be able to eat.
Right now, people around the country can smell Spring in the air, no matter what their location. For some it might mean digging out the snow, a patience showed by many of our Native Americans who lived in such a climate. It was a matter of surviving the storms and having patience that the sun would come back again to claim the Earth.
Modernly some are just waiting for the usual uptick in activities that come in the summertime with carnivals, outdoor sports and county fairs.
Patience is almost the base ingredient in most of the major events of our lives; it is almost a kind of internal faith that allows us to wait for a better day or the best day. Patience can be a tactical advantage in any skirmish, be it a better price on milk or proposing to the love of your life.
Why did I feel strongly enough to share this with all of you?
Because observation has shown all of us that we are becoming worse at patience collectively. We want our gas now, we want our food now and we all seem to want out pay checks yesterday.
Even in smaller areas of the world the feeling has crept up behind people in a world of instant everything. Places that were accused of being so laid back and peaceful that they almost seemed to be in a different mode of time have begun to accelerate.
Which is good, acceleration is good. Enough acceleration and you could drive past fear, move forward and explore anything, from the moon to your own inner thoughts.
However, acceleration mixed with patience means we may not miss all the sights along the road.
If you have had the patience to read this far and come along with me, I just felt it was something worth our time thinking about. Just takes a little time…and patience of course.
