“The Greek origin of the word patience suggests two ideas: one continuance, the other submission.  Combined, they mean submissive waiting; a frame of mind which is willing to wait because it knows it thus serves God and his holy purposes.  A person who believes in nothing beyond this world is very impatient, because he has only a limited time in which to satisfy his wants.  Patience is not something one is born with; it is something that is achieved.  Sight is a gift of nature, but seeing has to be won.  So it is with self-possession and patience; such a virtue is developed by resistance and control.  There are many who excuse themselves, saying that if they were in other circumstances they would be much more patient.  It makes little difference where we are; it all depends on what we are thinking about.  What happens to us in not so important, but rather how we react to what happens.  Tribulation tries the soul, and in the strong it develops patience, and patience, in its turn, hope.”  Archbishop Fulton Sheen (Way to Inner Peace)