An Analysis of Mary Stewart’s Collect Part 4: Let us take time for all things; make us grow calm, serene, and gentle.

Image of Mary Stewart from www.bcwi.ca/blog

 Submitted by June Crandall, Contributing Author 

Part 4 continues with an analysis of the Women’s Institute Creed written in 1904 by Mary Stewart.

I hope you have been reading this series of articles on an analysis of the Mary Stewart Collect/Creed. This part of the Collect is a clear directive on our responses to what we may encounter daily. By embracing patience in our interactions and choices, we nurture an inner peace that radiates outward. This simple action will influence our communities for the better. In cultivating serenity and gentleness, we lay the foundation for deeper understanding and connection with those around us.

So, what do these core values mean?

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Calm is the state of being free from agitation, restlessness, or emotional turbulence. Calmness allows for measured responses and thoughtful actions, even in challenging situations. Here are some tips to help stay calm.

• Taking deep breaths and responding thoughtfully.
• Staying relaxed during a stressful situation and listening carefully before offering your view.
• Remaining patient and choosing kindness over annoyance, therefore allowing for a measured response and thoughtful action as needed.

​Serene is a quality marked by tranquil clarity and peacefulness leading to a deeper sense of stillness and harmony; it is pausing before responding instead of reacting immediately. Here are some examples of serenity.

• The act of accepting change without succumbing to frustration. Carry yourself quietly and confidently.
• Listening fully without interrupting and remaining steady during disagreement and then speaking calmly and clearly in your response vs emotionally.
• Maintain inner peace when letting go cannot be controlled.

Gentle is acting with care, softness, and respect toward others. Gentleness is evident in actions and words that are considerate and sensitive, promoting kindness and compassion in all interactions. Gentleness is often mistaken for weakness, but in community life it is better understood as strength under control. It is the choice to handle people—and problems—with care. Gentleness is the outward evidence of calmness and serenity.

• It does not avoid the truth but delivers it without harm.
• It does not eliminate values and ethics but applies these with dignity.
• At its core, to be gentle is to make other people feel safe and respected enough to contribute; to have a voice.

In volunteer organizations and rural communities, gentleness becomes a kind of social craftsmanship: the ability to build, repair, and sustain relationships while still getting meaningful work done. Gentleness creates the conditions where people return, participate, and grow—because they are treated as valued neighbours rather than obstacles. Serenity, calmness and gentleness are the practical tools that keep volunteer groups healthy throughout the years and in facing the challenges of shifting times in which we live. When we practice these tools, we become more trustworthy, easier to work with, and more able to serve the greater good—together. ​