Dissociated Thoughts

We Need a Little Patience

Day 3227: September 14, 2021

I haven't been posting much recently for BCOF due to time demands, life, etc. Doctors have me running ragged this week and last week. But, since I woke early today, I have time to respond to today's prompt - and what a wonderful prompt to be able to write about!


Prompt: Write about patience. Do you have a favorite quote about this subject you would like to share?

Patience is something I did not have much of until the last couple of years. I suppose most are impatient in their youth though. And sometimes, I still get impatient - like last night when I was starving and the chicken I was cooking seemed to take forever. I probably checked on the chicken's progress every five minutes. - But, patience is a virtue (that's what they say, right?). We learn it as we age, as we go through periods of life we wish would be over in the blink of an eye, but once we're on the other side, we know the waiting was worth it. And, the longer we are alive, the shorter time seems to proceed. It is like we earn patience with age.

God wants us to have patience. There are many verses in the bible which counsel us on the virtue of patience. The bible says in Philippians 4:6, "Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." In Ecclesiastes 7:8, it states, “The end of something is better than its beginning. Patience is better than pride.” And Proverbs 15:18, “Hot tempers cause arguments, but patience brings peace.” - James 5:8 “You also must be patient. Keep your hopes high, for the day of the Lord’s coming is near.”

"But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience." - Romans 8:25

This is but a taste of what the Lord says about patience. But the bible isn't the only place you can find quotes praising patience. The teachings of the Buddha do as well. “There is no error greater than hatred. And nothing mightier than patience. So I strive in every way to learn patience.” – Buddha. As do the teachings of many other religious heads and great thinkers. Here are but a few:

“Patience serves as a protection against wrongs as clothes do against cold. For if you put on more clothes as the cold increases, it will have no power to hurt you. So in like manner you must grow in patience when you meet with great wrongs, and they will then be powerless to vex your mind.” — Leonardo da Vinci

“If you can cultivate the right attitude, your enemies are your best spiritual teachers because their presence provides you with the opportunity to enhance and develop tolerance, patience and understanding.” — Dalai Lama XIV

And Lao Tzu said, “Trying to understand is like straining through muddy water. Have the patience to wait! Be still and allow the mud to settle.”

There is a Chinese proverb that says this about patience, “Be not afraid of growing slowly, be afraid only of standing still.”

“If you have infinite patience and perseverance, success is bound to come. No mistake in that.” – Swami Vivekananda

Molière said, “A wise man is superior to any insults which can be put upon him, and the best reply to unseemly behavior is patience and moderation.”

And remember, "Patience is a key element of success." & “A man who masters patience masters everything else.”