Patience: The Frustration-Born Skill

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"I wish I had known that this, too, shall pass. You feel bad right now? You feel pissed off? You feel angry? This, too, shall pass. You feel great? You feel like you know all the answers? You feel like that everybody finally gets you? This, too, shall pass. Time is your ally, and if nothing else, just wait. Just wait it out." ---- Tom Hanks

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It seems that we're all in a rush these days. Everyone keeps scrambling around to get things done. I think this widespread, hastened mentality stems from having so much available to us in no time at all----music, movies, the news, that twentieth package from Amazon. Since our phones give us access to things almost immediately, it's not surprising that we begin to expect everything else in our lives to show instant results.

I myself have fallen victim to the assumption that my freelance writing business would just transform overnight. To be clear, I'm not saying things can't happen suddenly, because they definitely can. However, it's dangerous to begin thinking that it's "the norm". Everything doesn't happen in an instant, and it only hurts us to expect otherwise.

Believe it or not, taking the time to build anything intricately is actually a good thing. After all, we wouldn't feel confident about moving into a house that was completed in two days. We would have a LOT of questions, especially regarding its' stability, and therein lies the beauty of patiently creating anything worthwhile. Continuous success in all we put our hands to requires a firm foundation to build on.

Of course, having patience doesn't mean an absence of frustration. I personally am convinced that patience intentionally increases frustration, but that's just my opinion. The point is that we're simply people doing the best we can. That means there are days so overwhelmingly irritating when it doesn't seem like we've made any progress.

On the discouraging days, I've come to remember the words "This, too, shall pass." It sounds really cliché, doesn't it? Still, there's truth in those words despite the cheesy vibes. Among all of life's lessons, I think the one we're most familiar with is that everything changes, sometimes for the good, sometimes not. It's all the more reason for us to do the best with what we have.

With that thought in mind, wait. Just wait. I know, I don't like it, either, but when we reach the other side of this, it'll be worth it. Most importantly, don't feel shame for having a bad day, it's part of the process! As we continue making strides at our own pace, we'll get to where we're meant to be, and it'll be better than we imagined.

Every day we're presented with a decision to keep going or stop short. I've come too far to choose the latter and I'm sure you have, too. So, let's keep the journey going, shall we?