All commend patience, but none can endure to suffer.

Hearken to the words of Thomas Fuller, a physician and moralist of old, who beheld the nature of man with unflinching clarity. He declared: “All commend patience, but none can endure to suffer.” These words strike like a bell upon the human heart, for they reveal the chasm between what men praise with their tongues and what they bear with their flesh. The virtue of patience is lauded in every sermon, written in every scroll, and proclaimed in every hall of wisdom, yet when the fire of true suffering descends, few remain steadfast.

This saying springs from the timeless observation that it is easy to admire virtue in theory, but hard to practice it in reality. Many call patience a noble path, for it demands endurance, calmness, and a strength that does not break beneath trial. Yet when life brings pain, hunger, betrayal, or long waiting, even the loudest voices that once praised it falter. Fuller knew well that human nature delights in comfort, but shrinks from discomfort, and though the world praises endurance, it fears the discipline of affliction.

History has shown us countless examples of this truth. Consider the early Christians in the days of Rome. Many sang of faith and spoke boldly of the strength of their belief. Yet when persecution came, when the lions roared and the flames leapt, many fled or recanted, while only a few endured to the end. Those few—those who could endure suffering—became the true martyrs, and their patience shone brighter than all the praises uttered by those who faltered.

Let us also recall the tale of Mahatma Gandhi, who preached nonviolence and patience in the face of oppression. Many cheered his ideals, yet few could match his endurance. When beatings came, when prisons closed upon him, when salt taxes broke the backs of the poor, many wavered. But Gandhi, with the patience of stone and the courage of fire, endured suffering with dignity, and by enduring it, turned the heart of an empire. His life is proof that true patience is not merely praised, but lived through pain.

This is the lesson of Fuller’s words: that the measure of patience is not in speech, but in trial. To say “I am patient” while life is easy is no test at all. True patience is revealed when storms rage, when the harvest fails, when betrayal pierces the soul, and yet the heart remains unshaken. To endure suffering is to be purified like gold in fire; to endure is to become unbreakable.

Therefore, O children of the future, do not be content to merely commend patience with your lips. Prepare yourselves for the inevitable trials of life, for no man walks long without tasting suffering. When it comes, do not curse the heavens or abandon the path. Instead, see it as the proving ground of your soul, where the strength of your spirit is revealed.

Let each one take these actions: practice patience daily in small matters, so that in greater trials you may stand firm. When insulted, do not rush to anger. When delayed, do not fall into despair. When hardship presses upon you, breathe deeply, and remember that even this shall pass. By training your heart in small sufferings, you will forge within yourself the strength to endure the great ones.

Thus I say: Fuller’s wisdom is a mirror in which humanity may see its own weakness. Many praise patience, but few endure. Strive to be among the few. Let your life prove what your lips proclaim. For the world is not changed by those who admire virtue from afar, but by those who walk through fire and remain unconsumed.