Were it not for calamity, how would the sun of Thy patience shine, O Light of the worlds? Lament not because of the wicked. Thou wert created to bear and endure, O Patience of the worlds. – Baha’u’llah,Baha’i Prayers
Patience is so much more than waiting. It involves waiting, being quiet and hoping that things will turn out right while not rushing. It is falsely presented as a passive virtue but in the pause, when we desperately desire the lost peace to return to our lives, we endure the difficulties and tests by activating stillness and listening. When the world is a chaotic mess outside it takes great courage not to rush around, for instance, in jumping to conclusions with only a thread of knowledge. We look to spiritual giants for inspiration and guidance as to how they moved through life with peace and tranquility. Often, they have led lives of extreme difficulty and been tried in such tumultuous ways. What lives on for posterity is how they weathered that stormy period of their lives and how from it they were able to strengthen in spiritual qualities that enabled them to emerge from the fire in a more refined and beautiful form. This is what we see and admire and long to replicate in our own lives. It is humbling to acknowledge that there are no shortcuts to such growth. When we look at our hardships in this way it gives us a different perspective and perhaps lessens the severity, ever such a little. If only we would remember to turn toward God for His help to overcome an obstacle and not to ourselves and our woefully inadequate ways of dealing with things. In making that decision, to turn toward the Creator for guidance and assistance, we usher in patience as an intentional practice. The example of one such spiritual giant is `Abdu'l-Baha, the Example to remember when things get difficult and thorny. He counsels us that to dwell on our own misfortunes and shortcomings is to be imprisoned. When we think of our own selves less and think of those around us more and render some service to them, we then are released from this self-made confinement. Despite being actually imprisoned, He served His family and those who were confined with them. Instead of sharing this experience as a time of gloom and despair, He instead describes it as a time of intense happiness and joy because it was spent in the path of service. Taking in `Abdu'l-Baha's Writings that encourage and soothe a soul, or a story explained by someone else of how His example stirred their own understanding and impacted their lives in a lasting way, is an effective catalyst for looking at life differently. When we believe we are always loved, nothing is too much trouble.