Waiting

Patience is a virtue, or so they say. I used to pray for patience until it dawned on me that the only way to develop patience is to be put in a position of waiting. I'm not very good at waiting. Lately it seems that my entire life has been put on hold while I wait for others to make decisions. What is so hard about making a decision and then living with the decision you have made? I encounter a lot of folks who don't want to make decisions. It seems that they are afraid that their entire existence will be eternally altered by making the wrong decision, like where to eat lunch. What is so bad about making a bad decision and then adapting afterwards? I have made plenty of bad decisions in my life, but you adjust and move on.

Sometimes the decisions are delayed by "the process". Right now I am waiting to hear from immigration - a decision that was supposed to be made in two weeks - we now find ourselves without any response for the last four weeks. I am waiting to hear from my supervisor about the possibility of moving. I am waiting to hear from family members concerning their future. I wait and I wait and yet I have no control over the decision makers. Sometimes it feels like others just enjoy pondering the mystery and really don't want to move forward. So I wait.

I now find that I am having to be creative in this waiting process. I am finding new ways to distract my attention from the decisions of others. I like things to be instant and logical. Sudoku has become my favorite pastime. It is logical, it is instant and I know immediately if the decisions I have made are correct. If I make the wrong decisions, I simply start again. If I make the right decisions, I celebrate the victory. Why can't life be that simple? Make decisions, live with the consequences and celebrate the victories. It sounds logical to me!

I'll wait to hear what you think.