I often find myself waiting for something to happen. I wait for the drive thru to finish my order. I wait for the traffic to finally move. I wait for the commercial on the TV to hurry up and pass.
I wait for new opportunities to come and sometimes it feels like I'm waiting forever.
From the time we're little kids who can sort of understand the world, our parents or our teachers ask us to be patient. Patient, a word we learn early on, but never really understand. We get that this word means "to wait," but we still are unhappy about it. We're not really being patient if we're upset. That's because patience is a lot more than waiting. It's not just sitting there quietly while you slowly fill with rage. It's not mumbling under your breath in line at the grocery store or biting your nails in the DMV waiting room.
The definition of patience is "the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset." You see, we aren't fully understanding the meaning of this word. We teach our kids to wait, but often forget to mention the attitude that should accompany the wait. Attitude is important when it comes to patience.
My dad always tells me "Attitude is everything." And he has a point.
Just waiting is standing in the line with a grumpy face wishing you could yell at the slow woman in front of you. Patience is standing in line while you enjoy the sunny day outside and smile at the people around you. Patience is all about the attitude you choose to have while you wait, not the simple act of waiting.
When I think about all of the times I've had to wait, I try to think of all the times being upset made time move any faster. I can tell you it never happened. Time continued to move at the same rate it always does and the only day that was ruined was mine. A poor attitude only hurts you in the end.
When they say patience is a virtue, they mean it. A virtue is a "behavior showing high moral standards." Virtues are good for you. They help keep you on the high road and encourage you to follow the right path. Patience is a virtue that inspires us to see the good around us when we're waiting. To notice all of the things in our lives that we typically don't see if we're in a hurry.
Maybe your neighbor was in line behind you, but you were in such a rush you didn't get to talk to them. They might have really wanted to talk to you and invite you over for a fun summer BBQ, but you were too rushed to enjoy their company. Perhaps you'd have the chance to see something unique on the way to work, but instead, you hurry through missing it. Patience allows us to stop and think about our surroundings.
Remember that patience is not simply waiting. It's much more than that. I think it's time we all learn the true meaning of patience and start taking the extra time we have to think and contemplate the world around us rather than building up anger.
