Up@dawn 2.0

Tuesday, May 5, 2015

Nicholas Watts Final Blog Post!!!!!!!!! H01 group 1

The final principle of patience I would like to place emphasis on is that of organization and preparedness. I do not mean organization in the most base sense of having things sorted but the sense of having your own affairs in order and being ready for whatever may occur. While understanding and dedication are more practices of patience, organization and preparedness are more of the backbone.

When I think of this principle I am immediately reminded of the numerous times I was not prepared for events in and how it wreaked havoc on all aspects of my daily life. Often times they are small things, such as not having the foresight to charge a phone or scheduling events at the same time on the same day. While these are little things, they can have consequences that affect the lager whole of your life. Worst of all, they can diminish the effects of the other two principles. In an example from my own experiences, allow me to share with you an atypical bad day from not too long ago. 

I woke up one fine morning realizing two things: alarm clocks are annoying and I had a few hours until my first class would start. This is how most mornings are. I went through the morning routine without a hitch and was quite ready for the day. Then we come to the first example of disorganization. It seems I was foolishly unaware of exactly what day it was. The calendar had been incorrectly filled in, with my Monday/Wednesday/Friday classes existing in place of the Tuesday/Thursday classes and vice versa for that week. Normally this would not be an issue, except that the class for this specific day began an hour before the one written on the calendar. Unfortunately for myself, it did not occur to me that this was incorrect until I received a message from a friend asking if I would make it to class. 

Everything was still ok, I had half an hour to get there. It was here that the the next example of disorganization struck and things began to get interesting. I had lent the vehicle that would need to take me on this journey to a sibling the night before. However, it appeared that they had left the lights on through the night and the battery was now suffering for it. I mentally kicked myself for not having checked up on the vehicle upon its return the night before as I usually did. I had neglected to do this based on the calendar that stated I had plenty of time to do so the next morning. I do not do this because I do not trust that it would return in good condition, but so that this kind of situation could be avoided. This lack of dedication and organization was beginning to cost me.

I jumped the vehicle, let the alternator recharge that battery, and was soon on my way. I still had time. That time soon evaporated though, upon seeing massive road construction on my usual route. It should be noted here that while attempting to jump the battery I had received a phone call and the caller had indeed warned me about the road construction. In an occupied and technical mind frame at the time; I neglected to listen well enough to retain that key piece of information. I neglected to understand what was being said and was now paying for it. Forty-five minutes later I made it to my destination, late and ill prepared to face the day.

While the rest of the day continued in this pattern of praying upon my inconsistencies, the reason was abundantly clear. My inability to organize my affairs on my calendar months beforehand had created a day dominated by an impatient persona. It kept me from staying dedicated to my usual resolves and unable to be understanding. I hope this has illustrated the necessity of organization in regards to patience.

I believe in the practice of patience. I believe that embodying the three principles of dedication, understanding, and organization is key to coordinating a patient lifestyle. Admittedly it is not easy and I do not believe it should be. Without the challenge and the practice it simply is not worth doing. The challenges to achieve these three principles in unison mold you into a patient person. Like all things, patience is not an attribute that is always present. Sometimes it is absent in our lives (as I have demonstrated) as we are human after all. I believe patience is something we should all strive for. I believe that one day patience can come to describe an otherwise hasty species in humanity. I believe that patience is more than a virtue. I believe that patience is the key to living beyond our means and in full fellowship with our fellow men and women.

1 comment:

  1. Impatience may indeed be our species' Achilles heel. But just think of how much rippling good we can all do, by modeling the virtues of patience (through "dedication, understanding, and organization") for our peers and especially for our progeny. And for ourselves, of course. We're all works in progress.

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