Quotes About Patience

What he wanted was very near. It was typical of the monstrous, egregious, laughable irony which dominated his life that with every dragging lift of his arms, he should be saying over and over, 'Not yet.'

She drew herself up to her full height—it was a little difficult on a donkey—and said primly, "I have always found that in painful situations it is a sensible idea to take each hour as it comes and not to anticipate beyond. But oh how I wish I could have a bath!

Brainwashing, thought Mrs. Pollifax contemptuously, and suddenly realized that she was not afraid. She had endured other crises without losing her dignity--births, widowhood, illnesses--and she was experienced enough to know now that everything worthwhile took time and loneliness, perhaps even one's death as well.

19I particularly urge you to pray so that I may be restored to you soon.

But even a watched pot cannot absorb heat for ever.

Mummy, I think I might understand if only you wouldn't explain.

Well, it's no good jumping at conclusions." "Jump? You don't even crawl distantly within sight of a conclusion.

You had decided to take the action, whatever it was."   "Yes."   "Yes. It involved perhaps a period of inaction."   "Of comparative inaction—yes."   "Of suspense, shall we say?"   "Yes—of suspense, certainly."   "Possibly

Well, well. What can't be cured must be endured. This is our last hope gone. We shall be reduced to ringing minors.

So many things in this life are a waste of time

If I can't make you see the thing in the right perspective this time I'll chuck it for good.

The patient was able to get about, visit acquaintances, do light work about the house, flowers and knitting and reading and so on, and to drive about the place—in fact, most of the things that old ladies do occupy their time with.

There's life for you. Spend the best years of your life studying penmanship and rhetoric and syntax and Beowulf and George Eliot, and then somebody steals your pencil.

Somewhere, there, is an analogy, in a small way, if you have the patience for it. But I guess it isn't a very good anecdote. I'm better at animal stories.

I don't ask You to make it easy for me—You can't do that, for all that You could make a world.

Don't try taking over the Almighty's job," he said. "He's much better at it than you

Life is not in the habit of producing just what we want when we want it. For every exciting, challenging task there are usually a hundred dull ones to be tackled. Detective Thanet- Puppet for a Corpse

It probably takes many years of monastic practice to equal the spiritual growth generated by one sleepless night with a sick child.

The first ten million years were the worst, said Marvin, and the second ten million years, they were the worst too. The third ten million years I didn't enjoy at all. After that I went into a bit of a decline.

The more Susan waited, the more the doorbell didn't ring. Or the phone.

The longest and most destructive party ever held is now into its fourth generation and still no one shows any signs of leaving. Somebody did once look at his watch, but that was eleven years ago now, and there has been no follow up.

Well the hours are good...' ... 'but now you come to mention it, most of the actual minutes are pretty lousy.

On the delivery plate of the Nutri-Matic Drink Synthesizer was a small tray, on which say three bone china cups and saucers, a bone china jug of milk, a silver teapot full of the best tea Arthur had ever tasted and a small printed note saying Wait.

The more Susan waited, the more the doorbell didn't ring. Or the phone. She looked at her watch. She felt that now was about the time that she could legitimately begin to feel cross. She was cross already, of course, but that had been in her own time, so to speak.