Grant me Patience

Today I am including a favorite read from The Daily Word, a treat we enjoy each morning with our coffee;  and an article my friend Tom  posted on Facebook from the Daily Stoic.  I believe both offer situations we can relate to and hopefully overcome  with a touch of humor. 

From the Daily Stoic – 

THERE  WILL  ALWAYS  BE  THESE  KINDS  OF  PEOPLE

It’s easy to become disappointed with humanity each time you step into your car. Some drivers are angry and aggressive, tailgating or trying to push you into unsafe driving patterns.  Just as infuriating, is the slow, clueless drivers who needlessly blocks traffic.   

Who are these people? Who gave them a driver’s license? What is their problem?

These are the kind of questions you could say—or scream—from behind the wheel. That’s one option. Or you could try the modern version of a question Marcus Aurelius (you know the last good emperor of Rome)would ask himself each time he encountered a frustrating or incompetent person: Is a world without bad drivers possible? There are over 1.4 billion cars on the road worldwide, isn’t it likely that some of them might be poorly operated? So you’ve met one, so one of those cars is in front of you now. Is that really so surprising?

I love this next part:

A better way to drive, to understand these people, is to understand that the world is a diverse place. Some of us are good at many things, some of us are good at only a few things. Some of us are wonderful people and terrible drivers. Others are courteous, alert drivers who are complete monsters at work or home. Others are just bafflingly inept at basically everything, for whom life must be completely overwhelming and difficult.

Prepare yourself in advance for the reality of this diversity. Better yet, come to appreciate it. It makes the world interesting, and even if it didn’t, there’s not much we can do about it anyway. There will always be people like this or that. There will always be people to shake your head at.

Get used to it.

  I PATIENTLY AWAIT GREATER UNDERSTANDING  – Unity affirmation for the day (July 16 2019)

Sometimes I hesitate to pray for patience because I will likely begin to notice every annoying person or event that crops up in my life.  I will find plenty of opportunities to be patient! (This made me laugh out loud and I’ve saved it for that reason)

Yet I do want to practice drawing from the deep reserve of peace that dwells in my soul.  I know I have the capacity to let events unfold in perfect order without pushing them along or correcting what I  perceive to be errors. (no need to try to explain to that driver who tailgated you for several blocks that he/she is not only rude but an idiot)  I can let other people be fully who they are. (really if the guy/gal is so clueless you won’t change anything)   By focusing on my divine identity, I keep my temper in check and affirm the good in any situation. (at least I got where I was going without that idiot’s grill coming to rest in my back seat)  Aligned with the peace of God, I patiently await my greater understanding.

If Monty or I find ourselves ranting about this or that, we laugh and remember the scene from The Big Bang Theory where Sheldon is upset and comes to talk it over with  Penny.  Finally in frustration Penny tells Sheldon to visualize holding a pen in this hand  –  now open your hand and just let it go.”  

That’s it, just let it go!