Drops of Inspira

     Hello! Last night I was talking about where we want to be and the frustration that we feel because we haven't achieved that status yet. And I think we all go through those moments. Life always looks greener on the other side of the fence. Because if and when we do achieve those things that we want, we'll find something else to achieve.  It seems we need patience for progress.  What is progress really? It's moving forward a step at a time in the direction that makes a difference. But did you catch the word step ?  Even if we run, the motion is made up of small steps.  Our own lives aren't made up of giant leaps and bounds. It's made of small steps. Those steps are life. The moments in between that we don't think much of. The moments that we don't see because we are too busy being impatient.  What if we just slowed down and valued the small moments? We're so busy looking forward that we don't take time to look behind and see how far we've come...

 Hello! When I was thinking about patience this last week, I kept thinking about taking the time to breathe. Maybe because there's been a lot going on in my life. Things going along at such a rapid pace that I feel disoriented and desperately needing things to slow down so I can catch up and take in a breath. The problem is that we live in a world where things are in a constant state of movement. We pride ourselves on filling our schedules to the max and then some. When people ask how we are doing or what we are doing, we often reply, "I'm busy" or something like, "my week is so full."  I'm looking out at the main street of my small town right now and noting how busy it is.  Earlier, I was talking with someone about how busy it is compared to even three years ago. Three years ago, it didn't start getting busy on the weekends until 11 in the morning, Today it was busy at 9 and according to him, it's been like this all year. What happened to the sl...

 Hello! I know last week's post was a bit heavy, so this week, I wanted to tackle another angle of patience that is near and dear to my heart: Patience and How it Affects Mental Health. If you've followed my blog for awhile, you know that I struggle a lot with both anxiety and depression. As a kid, I never thought I would be dealing with either, but it happened.  Lately, I've been fascinated by just how much impatience takes a toll on the mind and body.  Did you know that impatience can raise your blood pressure, raise your cortisol levels and adrenaline? When these are raised, your body enters a fight or flight response and your stress levels raise. When your stress levels rise, your body is prone to physical illness as well as mental illness. Many illnesses start in the mind. It controls more than we realize. And no, I'm not saying it's all in your head. That saying is one that has been going around for far too long in my opinion. It basically means that the sick ...

 Hello! I'm going to get right into my discussion today.  If you missed last week's post, this month, I am talking about patience. Last week, I mentioned that anger and impatience often go hand in hand. I mentioned the Thomas Jefferson quote,  "When angry, count to ten before you speak. If very angry, count to one hundred." This quote is the basis of today's post. When I took a look at the words patience and anger  in relationship to each other, I found myriads of quotes. From Buddha to Jean Fontaine, from Mahatma Gandhi and Ali ibn Abi Talib, everyone seemed to have an opinion on these topics and the close relationship they share. Most agree that they are closely related. And why is that? Well, if you think about it, when you are very angry, your inhibitions are lowered. It's hard to think properly when you are angry, and you do things you regret.  The Bible has a couple of things to say on the topic. One of my favorite verses comes from Proverbs 15:1 which s...

 Hello! This is a rather difficult subject for me to write on, mostly because I've struggled with patience since I was a young girl. As a kid, I was quick-tempered, especially when riled, and it often got me into the worst sorts of trouble.  Now that I'm older, I still struggle with it, but have learned to stop and think (most of the time) before I speak or act even though every bit of my spirit wants to react. Thomas Jefferson is quoted to have said, "When angry, count to ten before you speak. If very angry, count to one hundred." Why do I bring up anger when I said I was going to write on patience? Because anger and impatience often go hand in hand.  When we are angry, we react quickly. We don't stop to think.  This month, I've chosen the topic of patience because it is something we all desperately need, myself included. I've titled the series Prayer for Patience because it is indeed a prayer. Patience is not something I can muster up myself.  Patience i...