*huffs*
What is the deal this month? Have I always been this impatient and it’s only the fact that it’s my month of patience that I’m even noticing? Or am I impatient because I know I should be cultivating patience? Or are things just extra annoying in July? I’m not sure, but no matter what’s happening here — impatience is my middle name.
Cori Impatience Ashley. Good to meet you.
And it’s little stuff that’s getting under my skin. I about lost it this morning when the pigeon that calls my roof home decided to move onto the porch stairs (I named him Barry). Right on the second-to-top step. Between me and the hose that I need to use to water my garden. I should also mention that I do not like birds. At all. No amount of shooing would get Barry to leave. Agitated, I stamped my feet like a kindergartner having a tantrum and yelled, “@#$% BARRY GO AWAY!!” He just looked at me. Jerkface.
Barry.
In completely unrelated news, I’m not doing so well with this action item. When I first came up with this action item, I thought huffing, crossing my arms, and checking my phone would be the three biggies for me. But instead I have found myself taking these slow exasperated breaths when I’m impatient. While this is probably better than, say, punching someone (or a pigeon) in the face, it still raises the tension level in my body. At least now I’ve caught myself doing it several times, and I’ve tried to correct my own behavior afterward by mentally trying to shake off the impatience. Usually I try and smile. Helps a bit, but really, my exasperated breaths have GOT to go.
Those other physical signs have popped up too. I was frustrated a while back with someone for something that really didn’t matter in the slightest. I was just annoyed for the sake of being annoyed. I found myself slumping in my seat, crossing my arms. I sighed in that exasperated way. I knew in that moment I was being ridiculous. So I sat up straight, spread my arms out on the armrests, smiled, and tried to get over it. I was still a little impatient, but it was much better than when I was exhibiting all the classic physical impatience sighs.
Could that have helped me this morning? Would I have been any less frustrated had I not thrown my little tantrum? Probably. Once I calmed down I called the pest control people and set up an appointment. I could have done that without the hysterics.
But still, I really, really want to punch Barry in the face.
[...] I practiced during my month of PATIENCE came in handy when trying to show people mercy, like “stop the physical part of impatience” and “check my expectations.” This allowed me to feel more in control of a [...]