Patience Says The Heron (Wait, What?)

Patience the heron must practice while waiting for fish for his dinner. Full many a task is accomplished if self-control rules our emotions.

Wait, patience says the what? Patience plays a bigger role in our daily lives more than we know and think we need. The word patience is not used a lot in life as our day is constantly moving from waking up to class to finishing assignments to socializing to everything in between. The thought of being patient and taking your time almost seems silly because of how much needs to be done on top of what we want to achieve. It’s those moments in our personal life where we want that certain someone or to be over with a time in our life in order to get to the next that we would rather not be patient for. As we look to the heron, without self-control while waiting for the best moment to capture the fish for dinner it would have not been able to eat. Our emotions rule over us and the importance of patience in our lives, but as humans, we can work patience and trust with time little by little each day.

If you know me personally, you have probably already heard me say patience says the heron multiple times a day. This quote, or totem, comes from values and reminders that are represented on the totem in the council fire circle at a camp I attended. Each one is represented through a symbol with a saying to hold onto in the present and as we grow in the future. Another example of a value is, “the spider calls us to be steadfast. He’ll weave his web over and over. We too must be willing to try, and try again, times without number.” These values ultimately craft us to be the best version of ourselves as well as reminders throughout the day. Patience says the heron has always remained a bit more special than other values as 

When you begin to slow down, listen, trust the universe, and clear your mind, patience can bring a completely new outlook to your life. There are points in our lives where we need to accept things as they are. This does not mean you have no control over your life, but rather spending less time worrying about what you can’t control and want to happen. Rather, a balance of taking control in order to reach your personal goals, but also not forcing things. How you respond to situations, especially difficult ones, honestly impact everything that follows. Sometimes it is frustrating as patience takes a lot of time to do and accept. Some moments are harder than others. But good things take time and always pay off. Small changes in mindsets each day with these reminders make a big difference within yourself in the end. When you are faced with choosing to force something or feel frustrated that something hasn’t happened yet, ask yourself will this feel as big as it will next week? Will it be more valuable if I take a step back and let it be for some time?

Aside from yourself, be patient with others. We are all growing and going through life together. A lot of things in life are temporary that we have to go through in order to get where we need to be. By holding this perspective a lot of things that appeared big become small. A certain kind of understanding, empathy, and more importantly patience towards others emerges to then build a better version of yourself. 

Patience can be applied to countless areas of our life whether it is waiting for your toast, babysitting, to hear back from a certain someone, or within yourself. If the heron tried getting the first fish without waiting for the right moment and when he was ready, the chances of dinner were small. When you trust the world around you, you will be surprised at what follows. So, next time try this. When you are getting frustrated with yourself or something in your life, take a step back, say patience says the heron, and trust the world around you. Trust me. When you begin to let go of what you can not control and not only trust the process, but yourself more will fall into your life than you will expect.

Photo: Her Campus Media

• change
• growth.
• life
• patience
• timing
• Trust