Let’s explore patience a bit more. It involves managing and reducing anger. Suppressing anger doesn’t help; later it comes back with a vengeance. We need to transform it. When you churn milk you get butter – no more milk. In the same way recognizing anger at its early stages is key to transforming it. Be mindful and notice your early signs of anger – maybe feeling irritated, frustrated, anxious, fearful, rapid heart beat, fast breathing, even sweating are some of the common early signs of anger. When you train yourself to recognize these early signs, tell yourself, “I might be getting angry.” Then think, “the other person is not happy since happy people do not provoke, and it takes two to tangle.” Then think, “why is s/he not happy? Maybe relationship issues, health issues, or money issues.” Just thinking this way for a short time calms down the insipient anger, as it has nowhere to go. Anger is narcissistic and needs the spotlight. When we do not focus on it, it shrivels. Of course this approach does not work the first time. So be persistent. Never give up!
