So patience... I was thinking the other day about the saying "Patience is a virtue." Meaning that patience is a commendable quality or trait. But in our society is patience really a virtue? How often are we really required to use patience? I mean Amazon Prime allows you to search for almost anything you need, click "buy now" and your possibly unnecessary item is guaranteed for delivery in two days. (Side note: I ordered this totally amazing fly swatter that looks like a fly fishing rod for my husband's stocking using Amazon Prime. It was supposed to be delivered on December 24th, but when I got the email saying delivery was delayed and it wouldn't be here in the guaranteed two days and in turn not here by Christmas, I went ape shit. How dare them make me wait for my fly swatter!)
If you are somewhat normal and not totally ancient, then DVRs are a game changer when it comes to tv watching. We have 78 Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood episodes recorded for our instant viewing pleasure whenever we please. Who can stand to watch tv in normal time with commercials? A little story here. I went to Mexico for a week and none of my shows recorded while I was gone. I was completely disgusted by the fact that I had to watch my shows ON DEMAND. WHAT? Commercials and no fast forward? How annoying! I couldn't remember the last time I watched TV with full control. Then I thought back to the days of VHS and trying to fast forward or rewind to the place you left off. My husband reminded me about the dollar charge for returning a rented VHS without rewinding it. Talk about slow-mo.
Let's think about what else requires no patience. How about Jimmy John's? Why are they such a successful company? Because our impatient asses love the fact that they are "freaky fast." Yesterday I got Jimmy John's with my three year old and before we could even fill up our soda, our sandwiches were ready. Freaky!
How about Walmart grocery pick-up? (Although your average oilers wouldn't be caught dead shopping at Walmart). I browse on my app, add food to my virtual cart and checkout with just a few clicks. I go to Walmart during my pickup time and a clerk brings the groceries right to my car. Very little patience required. No waiting in the deli line for your favorite pasta salad. No waiting at the bakery for your kid's free cookie. I don't even have to wait for the old lady to decide which flavor of cream of wheat she wants to buy. With that said, on several instances I have seen people in the pickup area yelling at the pickup clerks for not bringing their groceries out fast enough. So crazy. Someone else is picking out your groceries, bringing them to your car, loading them up for you, and you complain about a 5 minute wait.
Even can/bottle return requires almost no patience anymore. You can drop off your two bags at any time daily and the money is just added to your account. Our kids will never know the monotonous process of putting one can in at a time and 9 out of the 10 cans being rejected at least fifteen times. They will never leave with the can return area with sticky shoes and sticky hands.
How about wifi connections? Long gone are the days of dial-up connections. Remember that awful sound of the dial up? I wish I could make the sound here. I remember sneaking downstairs after my parents went to bed to my family computer so I could get on AOL Instant Messenger without my parents knowing. I would try to cover up the modem with a towel so I wouldn't get caught. Oh man, talk about patience. Can you imagine what that type of connection would do to a 13 year-old nowadays?
Okay and how about the hot seller this holiday season... The Instant Pot. Need I say more? This was marketed perfectly for our society. Meals ready in no time... yes please! Gone are the days of slaving away for HOURS. Nope. Just throw it in and slave away for 15 minutes. Tada! Aren't we all such great cooks?
It seems that patience may be a virtue, but we live in a world that is teaching us that is shouldn't really be valued. What our society values now is instant gratification. It is all about getting what we want and getting it now. I just have to think about Veruca Salt from Willy Wonka. "But I want it NOOOOOWWWWW!" I think that is our motto these days. Give it to me and give it to me yesterday.So what does this have to do with being an essential oils rookie? Well, in the essential oil world patience really is a virtue. It is a virtue in a few ways.
First... If you are using Young Living oils, which is the company I use, you probably have experienced some frustration around the delivery of your products. Many people ordered oils in early December and still didn't receive them in time for Christmas. Definitely no Amazon Prime here. I feel like any large company should be able to figure out fast deliveries with lower delivery charges. I have learned that nothing about ordering oils is fast and shipping is anything but cheap. I like to tell myself that it is worth the wait but the wait and cost can be extremely frustrating. I know the company has their reasons and explanations for the slow deliveries and high shipping costs but come on! I have learned that my best bet if I want things in a timely, expected manner, then I should sign up for Essential Rewards through Young Living. This will allow the company to process your order at the same time each month so you can have a better estimate for when your product will arrive.
Second... Oils don't work over night. For some reason, I have little patience when it comes to health remedies. I want something to work and for it to work right away. Ain't nobody got time for headaches, colds, or stomaches with two kids under three, laundry to do, dinner to make (again this is why everyone loves their Instant Pots), blah blah blah. So when I first used oils, I had this expectation that I would lather up and within minutes I'd be cured! But that is not the case. Many oils require consistency and time to have their proper effect. Some oils, like peppermint for headaches, have had an instant effect but that is pretty rare. You have to have patience with oils and you have to commit to using them over a period of time in order to figure out if they work for you or not. If you think oils will work "freaky fast" and all ailments will be cured, you will probably be disappointed.
Okay final part of oils that requires patience and is driving me absolutely bonkers is when you get near the end of an oil in a bottle. You've been tipping over that favorite oil of yours night after night and drip, drop the oil comes out. Then all of sudden you turn that bottle over and nothing. Nothing. Nothing. What the hell? I start by shaking the bottle. I turn it right side up and over again, up again, and down. I find the little hole on the rim and pour out of there. NOTHING!!! Finally I rip the top of the oil bottle off and DUMP that oil out. I don't have time to wait for little drops to come out of those bottles. It seriously sends me over the edge so beware if you haven't reached the end of an oil yet. I would advise you to hop on the YL website and re-order the oil but we all know that that isn't a quick solution either.
So when it comes to oils, I don't know if patience really is a virtue or just a serious prerequisite. There is very little instant gratification, although some people have claimed there is some. Don't be like Veruca's desire for the geese that lay golden eggs. Be patient like the olden days of dial up connections and slow cooked meals. I am working on my patience daily.
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