The Fire of Impatience

It's surprising how easily I can get angry, particularly when in a hurry to accomplish a worthy goal.

The more goal-oriented we are, the more likely we are to become impatient. And if our goal happens to be altruistic, impatience quickly morphs into righteous indignation - as if the universe were merely OUR lazy, incompetent helper.

Mindfulness practice grounds us in our authentic, timeless being mode & process orientation.

"... impatience is a form of aggression: against oneself, against the other, against the space in which it erupts.

... how familiar the surge of impatience had become ... with its heat and ragged edges, its insistence and righteousness. Sometimes even the twinges of martyrdom. Sometimes spilling over into raw frustration and outrage. Primitive! Overwhelming all of my best intentions! Lost it again!

Much of the time I was able to catch it, that moment of awareness that could observe the rising fire. I remembered the breath. Then another breath. Back into the body and this moment - the only moment there is.

So many times awareness rescued me from the rising fire of impatience."

Olivia Ames Hoblitzelle. “Ten Thousand Joys & Ten Thousand Sorrows. A Couple’s Journey through Alzheimer’s.” Penguin, NY, 2008.