“Adopt the pace of nature; her secret is patience.” Ralph Waldo Emerson
On my way to write an article about patience I discovered a significant prerequisite for peace of mind and patience – acceptance. After all, how can you be patient if you don’t acknowledge and accept what is present in your life? When you resist or judge reality your outer world will reflect your inner discomfort.
Acceptance versus Chaos
Try this. Say the word acceptance out loud. Do you feel a sense of peace, grace and relief? Acceptance rides on the calming energy of knowing that everything is exactly as it should be. The opposite is to believe that life is haphazard and chaotic; this belief will not lead to patience, peace of mind and joy. Accept what is. Better yet, embrace what is.
Acceptance is a Choice- Your Choice
Your current life situation may not be your preference, and you may want to change things in your life; however, you must start with accepting what is present. Acceptance is not apathy. It is a choice and the choice is yours to make. Specifically, do not judge yourself, others, what is present in your life or the world in which we live.
Non-judgmental acceptance is a prerequisite for patience, calmness, happiness and successful personal and professional relationships.
Acceptance is a strong branch to perch on, especially in high winds. Very Smart Girls accept without exception.
Quotes on Acceptance and Patience
∞ “Happiness can exist only in acceptance.” Eleanor Roosevelt
∞ “Our entire life consists ultimately in accepting ourselves as we are.” Jean Anouilh
∞ “Accept yourself as you are. Otherwise you will never see opportunity. You will not feel free to move toward it; you will feel you are not deserving.” Maxwell Maltz
∞ “To offer no resistance to life is to be in a state of grace, ease, and lightness. This state is then no longer dependent upon things being in a certain way, good or bad. It seems almost paradoxical, yet when your inner dependency on form is gone, the general conditions of your life, the outer forms, tend to improve greatly.” Eckhart Tolle
∞ “Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing, there is a field. I will meet you there.” Rumi
∞ “Patience is the companion of wisdom.” Saint Augustine
∞ “A man who is the master of patience is the master of everything else.” George Savile
∞ “He that can have patience can have what he will.” Benjamin Franklin
∞ “The years teach much what the days never know.” Ralph Waldo Emerson
photo credit: John A Ryan
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like your new article!
Thank you Jenny. I truly appreciate (and accept!) your feedback.
Jo-Ann I read your article and have had an experience with acceptance within the last month that was a big learning for me. My 89 year old mother had been visiting. Mother requires a lot of attention–meals and such. After her visit with me I was taking her to a clinic in Newport Beach, CA and we would stay in a hotel room, a small hotel room for another three weeks as she went through a medical program. I knew it was going to take a lot of patience/acceptance for me to survive in such a small space for so long. I meditated on the word patience whenever I felt myself running short. Within a few minutes of this meditation and prayer time I was renewed and able to continue with ministering to Mom. I found that this practice made my time with my mother and my own life so much more meaningful. Practice patience is a mantra I repeat over and over when I am stressed and most often (not always) I am washed by Spirit and feel the love of the other person and love for myself. Thank You.
Nancy,
Thank you very much for sharing your inspiring experience. I acknowledge you for the awareness you had of the situation you were entering into and the beautiful commitment you made to yourself and your mother. Meditating on the word patience is a great idea – I am going to do it!
Hi dear Jo-Ann,
Patience is a virtue that needs to be lived moment by moment. I like to keep this thought in mind since I am not the most patient in the world, and because I am not, I believe that God puts me in situations where I can practice being patient and practice is the best one can do at times. I do believe that I mainly have to practice patience and compassion with the person I have the hardest time being patient and compassionate, ME!!! it is so easy to be self critical and self condemning not realizing that in doing it I project my criticism and condemnation to the rest of humanity, so when I find myself criticizing others I ask myself, “Socorro, who are you to criticize and condemn? what is in you that you are condemning?” these are magical words that open my pandora box;)
Thank you for writing this beautiful article.
LOVE AND BLESSINGS,
Socorro
Socorro,
Thank you for sharing your real world example and your wisdom. There is a phrase that goes “If you spot it, you got it.” I think it is very true.