“Adopt the pace of nature. Her secret is patience.”

— Ralph Waldo Emerson

Do you ever find yourself trying to rush something along…because in your humble opinion, it seems to be taking WAY too long to unfold/finish/happen?

When I was traveling in Thailand recently, I had an interesting experience that reminded me of the importance of having patience.

My friend & traveling companion, Debbra, and I were on a boat tour for the day. It was scheduled to end at 6 pm. Truth be told, the tour hadn’t been particularly enjoyable and we were both eager to get back on shore…for cocktails & dinner!

The tour guide/boat driver, however, had other plans. It was already 5:45pm and we were heading back to shore…when the boat suddenly stopped.

“Sunset,” announced the driver, pointing to the sun — that was nowhere near the horizon! Debbra and I looked at each other. We didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. The other people on the boat looked equally confused.

And thus we all sat there, floating on the choppy sea, waiting for more than an hour for the sun to set. The British gal next to Debbra was seasick and holding her head in her hands. At one point, we asked her what we could to do help.

To which she shook her head and said, “Nothing. I’m just trying to get through this.”

Which is, truth be told, kinda how I felt…being held captive on a boat, waiting for the sun to set. At first, I was really irritated that the tour obviously wasn’t going to end anywhere near the scheduled time.

But then, after I accepted that this was how it was going to be and there was absolutely nothing I could do to change the situation, I turned my attention to where the boat driver obviously wanted us to be focusing our attention: the setting sun. And sure enough, even though it did seem to take an awfully long time for the sun to set, when it finally did, it was absolutely stunning.

Then the boat driver returned us all safely to shore — more than an hour later than scheduled. Did the world stop turning? No. Did we still get our extra big bottle of Leo beer and a yummy dinner? Of course 🙂

The next morning, I woke up and I got to thinking about the rather odd experience of being held captive on a boat, being forced to watch the sun set for over an hour. And it occurred to me that maybe I needed that reminder from nature that things take the time they are going to take.

The sun isn’t going to set faster because I want it to. Likewise with some of the writing projects I have been working on for years now. The more I force myself to try and finish them faster — because I feel they should be finished by now — the further I seem to get from the finish line.

Perhaps watching that super slow sunset in Thailand was a reminder to me to take my foot off the gas pedal — of life and work — a little more often?

How about you?

When was the last time you took an hour to watch a sunset?

Might there be an area of your life where slowing down & having patience might be the smartest thing you could do…to allow things to unfold at their pace – not yours?

Maryanne Pope is the author of “A Widow’s Awakening.” She also writes screenplays, playscripts & blogs. Maryanne is the CEO of Pink Gazelle Productions and Co-Founder of the John Petropoulos Memorial Fund. To receive her blog, “Weekly Words of Wisdom,” please subscribe here. And be sure to visit our PinkGazelleCards Etsy shop.