One of the interesting changes in today’s life is how much of it is convenient and fast.

Letters were hand-written, brought to a nearby mailbox, taken by the postal services to a distribution center, and then, some days later, handed to you by the postman.

Mails changed that, and much more. And yet, mail still used polite formulas as addressing the person at the beginning and ending the messages with some closing formulas. WhatsApp and other messenger services have mostly gotten rid of those.

A similar shift in habits is linked to shopping. Once, one had to go to a shop to discover available products, inform oneself about them with a salesperson, discuss them with colleagues and friends who have already tried them, and think about the benefits of the products before buying them.

Today, one may find oneself browsing through social media, hear from an influencer about the great benefit they found in using a product, receive a QR code, and use it to buy and pay for the product. On some websites, a similar process enables buying items with one click and receiving information about what other people interested in that product bought with it.

One of the many impacts this has had on many of us is a broader and more important confrontation with our emotions. Without the need to be patient, without the necessity to step into a longer process, without the necessity to find our way towards something we want, how do we learn to deal with our expectations and the emotional journey to meeting them? When do we practice it?

One could argue that there are still many things one cannot buy or have. But, for many, the relation between everyday items one can have almost immediately and those that can’t shifted towards a minimum. There is little one needs for everyday life that isn’t easily accessible.