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Michael Fox CPCC,
founder of m�agine!,
is a professional
coach and trainer,
author and creative artist, whose work has been featured throughout
the world.
Do you know someone
who might benefit
from our weekly email?
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Passion, patience, compassion...
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High in the California Sierras--between Auburn and Lake Tahoe, sufficiently removed from the interstate and time itself--I find myself standing on the shore of a lovely body of water known as Lake Valley Reservoir. The sky above me is a brilliant blue canvas suspended behind a leisurely procession of passing clouds. An innumerable guard of stately pines behind me reach heavenward, standing watch over the denizens of the forest floor. The lake before me is quiet, tranquil, reflective. I stand reverently in the midst of this natural cathedral.
I am quiet, tranquil, reflective.
As if to prove myself relevant in this majestic place, I pick up a small stone and flip it aimlessly into the lake. The water swallows the stone with a "plunk," and ripples of water radiate from the epicenter.
I now recall those expanding, concentric circles in the lake as I contemplate the compelling relationship between the qualities of passion, patience, compassion.
These three words--passion, patience, compassion--share an unlikely etymology; each word communicates a sense of suffering. Compassion means "to suffer with." Patience means "to suffer long." Passion, until the fifteenth century, was used exclusively to suggest "suffering, endurance," as in the Passion of Christ.
Today, however, we are more likely to associate passion with an intense, compelling emotion and its expression. The word's historical roots in suffering reminds us that while mere exuberance may be feigned, passion, well, not so much. Passion implies, one, a strong, personal attachment to something of personal, intrinsic value; two, the devotion to the object of our passion is voluntary, rather than compulsory; and, three, a willingness around personal vulnerability.
Passion runs deep; indeed, passion invokes heroic qualities.
The truly heroic life is not lived for self-aggrandizement. Twentieth-century writer Joseph Campbell observed of the hero's quest: "The ultimate aim of the quest must be neither release nor ecstasy for oneself, but the wisdom and the power to serve others" (The Power of Myth, p. xiv). Those who devote their lives to an heroic quest in pursuit of a noble aim will discover a life distinguished by the energy of passion, the mercy of patience, the grace of compassion.
Growing ripples of passion, patience, compassion.
Sit for a time with what you have just read. What comes up for you?
What's the "small stone" that impacts you and radiates ripples of patient and compassionate influence?
Consider the progression from passion to patience to compassion. What's possible?
If your compelling passion does not manifest itself in the mercy of patience, the grace of compassion, what's the learning?
What's the relationship between compassion and fear? How might compassion liberate you in your "heroic quest in pursuit of a noble aim"?
How might you remain quiet, tranquil, reflective, midst the noise?
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Michael Fox
m�agine!
530/613.2774
P.O. Box 9144
Auburn, CA, USA 95604
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In addition to personal and professional coaching,
m�agine! specializes in spiritual transformation coaching,
employing its proprietary models: Values, Vision, Voice and Heart, Soul, Mind & Strength.
Michael's books include Complete in Christ,
Complete in Christ Spiritual Transformation Workbook, and Biblio�files.
Coaching fees are based upon a sliding scale. Contact us for details.
Limited scholarships are available for spiritual transformation coaching.
On the flip side, if you are able, please inquire about opportunities
to fund scholarships for those who cannot afford coaching fees.
View our archives!
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