Wait and See

Wait and See

“One minute of patience, ten years of peace.”   Greek Proverb

In this day and age, patience is a virtue that not many of us have! Things happen at the flick of a switch or a click of the mouse, and if we have to wait a moment longer… then impatience kicks in! We want it all, and we want it now!

Listen to the Audio (Music by Majestic India)

The truth is the vice of impatience will never really allow us to feel relaxed and free. For that we need to learn patience and that can take time and, well, patience!

Learning to be patient will not only decrease the stress in our lives, it will make us much nicer people to be around. We can begin to savour the delights of life instead of constantly jumping to the next thing in an usually unsuccessful attempt to get everything done, so then we can relax!

We are impatient in so many ways: We grow our vegetables in artificial light and add hormones to speed up their growth, we do the same with milk production – we artificially impregnate our cows and force the milk out of them rather than let nature take its course! We deplete the soil by never giving the soil a chance to replenish itself. We mass construct buildings in a short time, at the risk of our safety. And why? For money, power and recognition. Because mankind is greedy, and if we can be rich tomorrow then why wait! Let’s speed it up!

Many of us are living life in the fast lane and that can only mean one thing that we are speeding to get to our death! Think about it, if we are not being patient, then what is in its place?  Surely intolerance and frustration. And that means that we are not enjoying, or really living our lives. If we are always waiting impatiently for the next thing, then when do we have time to appreciate the beauty of the moment?

If I am not patient today then I may become a patient stress tomorrow. I recognise that everything comes in its own time and I become calm and accepting. We can all have patience in certain circumstances, but lets try to stretch that limit every time, so we don’t succumb to the impatience.

Sometimes we make haste to make things happen quickly or to create the outcome we want, when all the signals in our drama are telling us to ‘wait and see’. Sometimes we are impatient for someone to finish off a conversation quickly, or for them to complete a task very fast, or we get irritated because they are not understanding what we are saying. Next time you feel the impatience rising, then stop and just ‘wait and see’ what happens next. Give it a few minutes, give it more time, and see how events to unfold WITHOUT your intervention. You may be nicely surprised.

It’s really our ego that wants to jump in most of the time, and claim that it can do better, be smarter, and finish quicker. Patience stops the ego from claiming its victory in that moment! Drop the ego, adopt the patience.

Sometimes we need patience and understanding for things to happen. It would be good to remember here that all seeds take time to germinate, grow, and produce fruit. Everything in life takes its time. We cannot rush or force the seed to grow faster. Yes, do what you need to do. Put in the effort and if the effort is right, things will automatically fall into place, they come alive. It’s when we try to force things to happen that we go against the natural rhythm of life. This creates an energy of frustration and disappointment… and then it’s often our experience that nothing works!

In patience there is no disappointment or struggle. Everything that is happening is perfect and accurate. It couldn’t be better! I accept the flow, I go with the flow!

Patience is like a mother, it gives birth to many beautiful qualities such as love, compassion, understanding, wisdom, kindness, sweetness, empathy, gentleness. Patience really is a virtue worth cultivating.

How do you cultivate patience? By just thinking about it? Talking about being patient? Or by just being it? Next time you know that patience is the best option, then stop talking and just do it. Stop, wait, and ponder. Take a few deep breaths. See the benefit in it for you, allow the drama to unfold in its own time and begin to enjoy life.

It’s time… to be patient. Not to think about it, but to be it. Wait and See. Make the effort, but don’t force or push, and patience will guide the way. If you are not patient, then you may end up becoming a patient!

‘Patience serves us against insults precisely as clothes do against the cold. For if you multiply your garments as the cold increases, that cold cannot hurt you; in the same way increase your patience under great offences, and they cannot hurt your feelings.’

Leonardo da Vinci

© ‘It’s Time…’ by Aruna Ladva, BK Publications London, UK