Tests from the Universe

I'm a big believer in the idea that events in this life unfold for a reason. Not in the, "it's meant to happen because that's your destiny" sense, but more that the Universe has this way of guiding you in ways of bettering your life, if you're open to it.

Often times, as I've found, this means learning a lesson before getting to the good stuff. In recent years, I've noticed that the world has shown me the value of such things as attention to detail and thoroughness - though at the time I had no idea I'd become a skydiver where these attributes would be critical to saving my life. It's also slapped me upside the head recently and let me know that, difficult as it may be, speaking up for my own wants and needs is critical to my happiness - after all, no one else is going to do it for me.

So that takes me to what I believe is my latest lesson; patience.

I'm on to you Universe, you're testing my patience right now...and let me be the first to tell you that you're not going to make me fail at this one. Difficult as it may be, I'm giving every ounce of energy I have left to practicing patience. You're not going to drive me mad with this one.

Sometimes when you see good things start to unfold you just want to skip to the end to reap the rewards. Turns out, this isn't the way things work. And sometimes, no matter how hard the waiting part is, there's nothing more you can do to fill the space between effort and result - aside from waiting.

As the song goes, waiting is the hardest part. And no matter what the result is, making the best of it can be the most important...it's just a matter of not knowing, living in limbo that tends to drive people crazy (well, me at least). So, I'm taking this as a test from the Universe once again, that ultimately will show me the benefits of being patient, and remaining positive at the same time.

But it's far from easy. The questions that run through the mind are enough to drive anyone a little nutty, but it's important to remember, not to doubt yourself, because in the end you don't want to have to pick up more pieces of your shattered self than is necessary.

So tell me dear readers, what are some of your tips and tricks for patience?

Cheers!

-A

Patience ≠ strength

I want to share something that slapped me upside the head recently.

Now, it's no secret that patience is not one of my strengths. When there's something I want, I want it now. And if it's something that needs to be done, I expect it to be done right. This used to mean that I would do just about everything I wanted done myself so that I knew it was done right. But, considering my career, I've had to loosen up on that and learn to trust a bit more.

Waiting in lines also has become less of a chore, but I can thank my iPhone for keeping my ADD brain busy and allowing me to multitask. Cuz as we all know, if I'm not doing more than one thing at a time, I'm not in my comfort zone :).

But even with these improvements, I'm still not a very patient person. I could never be a teacher. I thank my stars frequently that my brother decided to pursue a career in IT, making him the go-to with all computer and techie questions that my family can think up. I just don't have the patience to teach people who don't have the first clue about technology - it's easier to do that crap myself.

The funny thing is, even though I'm acutely aware of my lack of patience and need to work on this area of my life, I still expect that other people will be patient with me. Great example: I'm a question asker, an information seeker, if you will. I don't like to make decisions or give a concrete answer to anything unless I'm certain about what's being asked of me. So I have a tendency to ask questions to fill in the blanks...sometimes lots of follow up questions. This tends to irk some people who aren't from this same camp. And when frustration happens, I tend to lash out, just expecting patience to overcome them.

This, my friends, makes me a jerk.

I mean really, who can possibly expect perfection from others when I myself can fully admit to being FAR from perfect in every aspect of life. On top of that, I'll be the first to tell you that perfection is more times than not, completely annoying. Who wants to be surrounded by perfect people? I mean, they're just a constant reminder of how imperfect you are anyway, right? So expecting perfection is just asking for annoyance. C'mon Ashley, wise up already!

Wow, this post doesn't seem to be going in any real direction...my apologies if you're having trouble following.

I guess my point is this - I'm impatient, especially with people who aren't patient with me. Which is totally wrong on my part. But I'm aware of it, and I'm working on it. So, thanks to those who are patient with me while I work on my understanding of the fact that you're not all that patient either.

Um...even I'm having trouble following this logic now. But I hope it makes some sense, if you've been patient enough to have read this far.

Cheers!

-A