Advent and the Habit of Waiting

There are two simple words that say so much about how life works. At least, I have come to believe so over the last few years as I have thought about what it means to live wisely and well. One of them is rhythm (I will explain why in a future article). The other is habit. We cannot escape the fact that Aristotle was right when he said that ‘you are what you continually do.’ Habits form us into the people we become.

I am sure that I will return to it in future articles, but I was reminded of this truth again by a recent article in Relevant magazine, by Ben Kay. He argues that our digital culture has been forming or deforming us in destructive ways. We should let the season of advent remind us and reset us in better habits. We should let it provoke us to think about what the habits of the instant society are forming in us. And think about what habits we can cultivate to counter this. Advent reminds us of the value of the habit of waiting. In a society where we can have so much of what we think we want when we want it, to discipline ourselves to see that the best comes to those who wait. It reminds me of a quote from the novelist John Fowles:

I can stick artificial flowers on this tree that will not flower; or I can create the conditions in which the tree is likely to flower naturally. I may have to wait longer for my real flowers; but they are the only true ones.

John Fowles

You can read the Relevant Article here.