The power of patience is a lesson we can learn in our day to day lives for better mental health.
Practicing patience is beneficial to maintain good mental health. Stress is related to patience, our ability to remain calm. When we become impatience and frustrated our stress levels go up. For example I recently was stuck and I mean stuck in a traffic road construction zone. There was only one lane with a Pilot Vehicle who slowly, and I mean slowly, guided the train of vehicles along the newly paved road.
Initially the wait, or what I assumed, would be only a few minutes. No. It was 15 minutes. Stopped on the road, cars beginning to pile up behind with only a couple in front. Personally I hate being late, I could feel the pressure begin to build as I glanced at my watch and the construction people holding the ‘STOP’ sign. Grrrr.
It was an agonizing wait.
My blood was beginning to reach the frustration point and looking around, with no exit in sight, yes blurted out a few colorful metaphors.
I noticed the vehicle in front,
the lone woman occupant was just as stressed as me, maybe more so, because she was smoking like it was a cure for cancer. She got out her car looking up and down the road impatiently waiting for that Pilot Vehicle. Her expression showing what the rest of us in the line were experiencing. Being curious I wondered if there was some emergency.
In the side mirror, I glanced at the lone female occupant in the vehicle directly behind.
She was having a different experience. Her head was bouncing up and down, side to side in a rhythmic motion, hands tapping the steering wheel, and generally enjoying this moment. She was singing.
It took a few minutes as I watched the two different people having two different experiences, each making that choice in the same event. None of us could control the road construction or the speed of the Pilot Vehicle. It was a lesson. How we respond to life and the things we cannot control really depends on our choice. I admit I was mad and frustrated, yet recognized there was a teaching and learning opportunity.
Smiling, I turned up the tunes and began to really enjoy this moment in time.
A moment where I had to slow down and stop. Being late was not going to end the world and when I arrived my attitude was one of calm. Make that choice to practice patience, be curious and enjoy a tune or two.