PATIENCE:

Like any plant, growth of the Chinese Bamboo Tree requires nurturing – water, fertile soil, sunshine. In its first year, we see no visible signs of activity, in the second year, again, no growth above the soil. The third, the fourth, still nothing and finally in the fifth year – behold a miracle! The Chinese Bamboo Tree grows 80 feet tall in just six weeks!   The Chinese Bamboo Tree is a perfect parable to our own experience with personal growth and change (whether we are working on ourselves, coaching others or working on a particular task). It is never easy; it is slow to show any progress, It is frustrating and unrewarding at times. But it is sooooo worth it….especially if we can be patient and persistent. This is the critical variable in attaining new skills – in developing ourselves and others. It is our ability to stay persistent even when we are unable to see any growth on the surface…. just like the Chinese Bamboo Tree. 

Can we stay focused and continue to believe in what we are doing even when we don’t see immediate results? In a culture driven by instant gratification – this is our biggest challenge. We often tell each other, remember to “Keep trying! And NEVER give up!” The change may be slow, even invisible at times but suddenly, as in the case of the Chinese Bamboo Tree, we will surprise ourselves. Keep your faith in this important work, don't relent on your effort, keep going, keep moving, keep doing and one day it will happen. We live in a quick-fix society. We get frustrated if we have to wait more than 2 minutes for service or a stop light to change, most young men and women want the fast track; we want instant solutions to every complex problem and every fractured relationship. In short we want it all now! But we must understand that what comes easy goes easy and what comes hard stays longer. Maybe it’s time to reflect on an old, old poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow that is as true today as it was when he wrote it over 100 years ago:

“The heights by great men reached and kept

were not attained by sudden flight,

But they, while their companions slept,

Toiled ever upward through the night.”

Remember:

"Every seed knows its time - all in good time." Russian Proverb 
"An ounce of patience is worth a pound of brains." Dutch Proverb 

May the goodness of the Universe never elude us, Amen.

Ogunjobi Kamikun (@kammykroxx).

Do have a splendid and successful week ahead.