Patience

“Patience is not passive; on the contrary, it is active; it is concentrated strength.” ~ Edward G. Bulwer-Lytton

I think it takes great strength and courage to be patient.  I have failed many times to surrender to this gift and yet when I do, it always allows my life to be exactly where it should be, without effort or stress.

Patience allows life to fall into place naturally except, I always believed that if I didn’t take control and chase after something that I wanted, then I would miss out or it wouldn’t happen. I convinced myself I knew better than the flow of the universe and continued to exhaust myself in pursuit of what I thought would bring me happiness.

After realising again and again that my goals always arrived in perfect timing with or without my help, I began to trust there was a natural flow of events far greater than myself.  I began to trust inwardly that even though it appeared that nothing was happening, it was infact, unfolding exactly as it should.

Patience is really about having the inner strength to stick to your guns, face your fears, repeatedly let go of internal expectations, and have trust that it will all work out in the end. – Joanna Warwick

We need to remember that stepping out in courage in pursuit of our dreams is still a necessary effort and yet, not knowing when or how that will come to us, is when need to practice patience.

Watch and feel the emotions that arise when we are impatient.  Practice creating a pause between our feelings of annoyance and frustration, and our response to those feelings.  It is in that pause that patience can arise naturally. In that pause we can release our inner turmoil and see ways to forgive unnecessary actions.

We are often very hard on ourselves to achieve great things and believe that this requires great effort and stamina, when infact, sitting in acceptance of what is, and accepting we do not know, will allow us to receive more than we imagined.

It has only been through practices like mindfulness, meditation, yoga, compassion, and loving kindness that has allowed me to transform my impatience into more positive, productive energy and help create more space for me to receive.

I still struggle at times to trust, but when I remember how allowing requires much less effort than chasing anxiously for what I want, I practice patience again.

Rumi’s poem gives us great insight into understanding patience.  I hope this encourages you.

When I run after what I think I want,
my days are a furnace of stress and anxiety;
if I sit in my own place of patience,
what I need flows to me, and without pain.
From this I understand that what I want also wants me,
is looking for me and attracting me.
There is a great secret here for anyone who can grasp it.
~Rumi