Love is patient

Nolwazi Mnikwa
Relationships

LOVE is a characteristic of strong affection and dedication to another. Love, in as much as it embodies a whole range of feelings, is more than a feeling; it is a decision to demonstrate dedication and commitment. The decision attribute of love is that which keeps relationships going when the feeling element dwindles.

The decision attribute of love is also that which will help revive the feeling element when it dwindles. To revive the feeling element when it dwindles, there is the need for one to be patient in love.

To be patient means to be forbearing, to be able to tolerate issues that may arise without getting irritated, anxious or annoyed. Patience requires tenacity, determination, resilience and determination. In being patient, one should be accommodating, understanding, calm, composed and even-tempered.

To be patient also requires one to be purposeful as there is a purpose they so desire to achieve in being patient. The characteristic of being patient is demanding, yet it is being patient in love that you get to enjoy the beauty and fruits of love. Patience is also known to be a virtue and it is a virtue which is very needful in loving someone.

When we combine the terms love and patient to say love is patient, it speaks of a deep form of love that is unconditional, that does not choose to be present in the good yet absent in the bad. It is a kind of love that cannot be easily broken; it is the kind of love that is present regardless of the circumstances.

A mother’s love is a very good example of a kind of love that displays patience. From the moment a mother is with child in her belly, she begins to develop the feeling of love towards the baby developing in her womb. The decision aspect is also evident from the onset of pregnancy when a mother makes the decision to keep her baby.

Despite the morning sickness, the nausea, the metallic taste in the mouth and all other pregnancy related symptoms, the mother will love her baby. This shows the feeling nature of love, the decision nature of love as well as the patience virtue of love. Regardless of whether the mother wants to eat or not, regardless of whether a certain type of food causes her to throw up or not, a mother will during her pregnancy make an effort to ensure she eats well for the baby’s sake.

This is the decision of love in manifestation as the mother decides to cater for her developing baby’s needs. It is also the virtue of being patient in action because the mother knows that what she is going through is temporary, that it shall come to pass and at the end of it, she will have her healthy little bundle of joy in her arms.

In spite of the fact that a mother may have experienced the worst symptoms during pregnancy or whether she had a long labour, a brutal delivery experience or whether she had a C-section; a mother will go on to have two or more children because she is a vessel of love. There is no amount of morning sickness, nausea or labour pain that can stop her from loving her children.

A mother demonstrates that love is patient even as she nurtures her child as the child grows. No matter how naughty a child is, a mother will love her child, regardless of what others may say about her child, a mother will love her child. A mother will work towards grooming that naughty or rebellious child, she will work towards instilling the right values in her children because she is the definition of love is patient.

A mother will not give up on her child by reason of her child being rebellious, slow to learning or any other reason. She will love her child without condition simply because love is patient.

When Thomas Edison’s mother received the letter dismissing her son from school, she did not label her child mentally-ill or dull. Instead she informed him he was a genius, she took the care and patience needed to teach and nature him and today we have the light bulb owing to his invention. The approach used by Thomas Edison’s mother is one that demonstrates the principle of love is patient.

The principle of love is patient applies to marriage as well. A marriage is the coming together of two uniquely designed individuals with different personalities and having been raised in different backgrounds. It is therefore not surprising that these 2 individuals will have disagreements here and there; it is no surprise that they will have differences of opinion as well as differences in habits and in the way they do things in general.

The failure to approach these differences in love oftentimes results in resentment and in extreme cases it results in divorce. However; having the understanding that love is more than a feeling, it is a decision and also having the understanding that love needs to be approached with patience will go a long way in preserving marriages.

A financially literate man can marry a woman who may not see the value in each dollar spent. Instead of getting angry with her for the manner in which she handles finances, it would be in the best interest of the relationship for the man to teach his wife how to use finances well and how to make smart decisions with money.

In this approach, the man is demonstrating understanding and he is being accommodative. He is in a general sense exhibiting patience in love.

A woman on the other hand may normally resort to shouting if she feels she is not being heard or understood or just for the sake of winning an argument. This would show a lack of patience, it instead shows annoyance and irritation.

Instead of shouting, the woman could find an alternative approach to communicate her views; she could use a different choice of words and tone to put her point across in order to help her husband understand what she is communicating. In doing this, the woman is displaying the virtue of patience, she is being accommodative and understanding.

A lot more marital examples could be given where the principle of love is patient can be applied. In essence the principle of love is patient should be applied in all areas in marriage. Living in the reality of the love is patient principle is the secret to a sweet, beautiful and lasting marriage.

The principle of love is patient is not only restricted to mothering and marriage, but it is a cross cutting principle that applies to every areas of your life, it applies to every relationship you have.
I would love to hear your thoughts, comments and feedback as well as relationship topics you would like to have covered. You may send these to [email protected] or to +263775978857. Keep safe and be blessed.