Is patience a virtue?

In 1377, William Langland wrote the allegorical narrative Piers Plowman. From this piece came a very popular proverb: patience is a virtue. The ability to wait for something without excessive frustration is a valuable character trait. It's similar to the Latin, Maxima enim..patientia virtus (Patience is the greatest virtue) and the French, Patience est une grand vertu (Patience is a great value).

Personally, I don't believe patience alone is the greatest virtue (I believe humility is), but it is rightfully a very desirable character trait that individuals have sought after over the course of history. This is why I thought it was important to mention that I spent the weekend in New York City and was shocked by the lack of patience that I saw so proudly on display.

I admit, I don't identify with the hustle and bustle and fast lifestyle that it takes to survive on Wall St. or to live in Manhattan. I'm a Midwesterner who enjoys the slower pace that the East Coast lacks. I don't think this is reason for the lack of patience that I witnessed this weekend, though.

I could list numerous examples, but I think I will stick to one in particular: elevators. I choose not to ride elevators for a variety of reasons, but I was literally forced to this weekend in New York City. I was shocked by the lack of patience that individuals exercise while riding up and down. Before they even stepped foot on the elevator, I saw individuals repeatedly pushing the "up" or "down" button in the lobby as if they didn't notice the obvious light that indicated that it had already been pushed by someone, in most cases, themselves. I gave a pass for this because there are circumstances that force the elevator to take more time than usual.

Watching people exit and enter elevators became and interesting social experiment for me, too. I didn't see the manners that I thought everyone learned from their grandmother as an infant. Let others get off before you get on. Seems pretty reasonable, especially if you live in a culture that depends on elevators. I didn't concern myself with this "phenomenon" much, either. I mean, I can't change the entire culture in NYC much like I can't explain to people in Moscow the concept of a single file line.

The thing that got me the most was that little button at the bottom of the menu of buttons - the "close door" button. I saw people abuse this button and push it as if their life depended on it. It was so noticeable, that I thought I would research the difference this most-popular button actually makes. I went online to find a few answers, but there was nothing definitive. I was surprised to see some claims that the button actually wasn't wired to anything. It was simply there to give passengers the illusion of control. The lift control mechanisms decide when the doors should actually shut according to their programmed cycles. Others claimed it actually does work. One writer who had "evidence" for the importance of pushing the close door button said the door in his building will close in five seconds after pushing any button, but will close in only three seconds after pushing the close door button. He saves close to two seconds in an amazing display of impatience.

Is patience a virtue? The elevator illustration might be an impractical example, but where else do we experience a lack of patience that is just as ridiculous when we break it down? Traffic lights, buffering videos, microwaves, mobile phones, etc. are all pieces of technology that drastically make for more time, but somehow rob us of our patience. The elevator might be insignificant, but is that lack of patience rolling over to other, more important, areas of our lives? I think so.