What is the role of patience?

This week I’m thinking about patience. I’m thinking about being patient with others, of course. But mostly I’m thinking about being patient with myself. Stop rushing through the current moment—the next moment is not guaranteed, so enjoy this one. I’ve been trying to stop thinking about the things I didn’t do, and instead think about the things I will do now.

From a secular perspective, the soul can be a convenient metaphor to describe your psyche, or the inner universe that is your unconscious life. God, at the core of the soul, could be thought of as your authentic self, true self, or actualised self. The inward journey reflects the introspective work of understanding hidden aspects of your psychological experience to find inner peace. When you ignore your interiority, life is chaotic and exhausting. When you know who you are – the truth of your inner life – you can be clearer about your direction in the external world and act authentically.

~ Skye C Cleary, from How to find inner peace like Saint Teresa of Ávila

That turns out to be quite full of secular insight. Who wouldn’t like more inner peace? I sure would. After all, serenity is my touch-phrase this year.

If you do the job in a principled way, with diligence, energy and patience, if you keep yourself free of distractions, and keep the spirit inside you undamaged, as if you might have to give it back at any moment— If you can embrace this without fear or expectation— can find fulfillment in what you’re doing now, as Nature intended, and in superhuman truthfulness (every word, every utterance)— Then your life will be happy. No one can prevent that.

~ Marcus Aurelius

Granted, it’s a modern translation into English, and not his original words. (I can’t read Greek and I am not doing the side quest to learn to read ancient Greek just to read the original writing.) But 2,000 years later, Aurelius’s notes to himself are strikingly still useful.

[I]t’s important to have a sense of urgency. But there’s a difference between urgency and rushing, hurrying, going quickly for the sole sake of speed. There is an old Latin expression that I think captures the balance here nicely: Festina Lente, which means, Make haste slowly. A sense of urgency…with a purpose. Energy plus moderation. Measured exertion. Eagerness, with control. It is about getting things done, properly and consistently. They like to say in the military that slow is smooth and smooth is fast.

~ Ryan Holiday, from These Are Leadership Ideas I Try To Apply Every Day

This is just one, from a long list of great ideas. I’ve been thinking and mentioning festina lente ever since I first learned about it.

I beg you, to have patience with everything unresolved in your heart and to try to love the questions themselves as if they were locked rooms or books written in a very foreign language. Don’t search for the answers, which could not be given to you now, because you would not be able to live them. And the point is to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps then, someday far in the future, you will gradually, without even noticing it, live your way into the answer.

~ Rainer Maria Rilke

Each time I realize I’ve found a better question for myself, it turns out that the answers are findable. It’s as if the answers I seek are waiting (patiently?) for me to be ready.

Today strange.

Strange day at work.

~ George Saunders, from The Moron Factory

Normally, I try to weave together the specific bits I quote with the overall theme. Or I at least try to weave it into my train of thought (which is never so linear as to follow one theme.) But not this case. Nope. Need 15 minutes to read. Reads like Neanderthal-speak. Non-grasp of language hits harder. Including important words only. All still here. Not forever.

In stressful moments, I try to take distance from the situation, take time to reflect. Whatever the problem, I typically ask myself, “Am I able to make a difference right now?” If I don’t see a clear way to make a positive impact, I reflect further. I think that patience in problem-solving can often be underrated.

~ Eric Ripert

Patience in problem-solving is always underrated. And, yes, even if you know that and try to be extra patient. Still under-rated.

Paper is good. Somehow, a blank page and a pen makes the universe open up before you. Why paper has this unique power is a mystery to me, but I think we should all stop trying to resist this reality and just accept it.

~ “Dynomight,” from Paper

Paper is good is a colossal understatement. The magic of writing comes from being forced to slow down; one has to hold on to a single-sentence sized thought long enough to write it. You’ve never held one thought, clearly in mind, for 10 seconds… unless you were writing it down.

That is patience in action.

Until next time, thanks for reading.

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