Waiting

Humans spend a lot of time waiting. Whether it be on hold, in a grocery line, in a hospital waiting room or for an answer–it takes a big chunk of our lives. Some people are good at waiting, patient and philosophical, never batting an eye when the answer comes. Others are pacing, wringing their hands, thinking the worst, having no doubt that the end is near. I guess I’m in the middle of the pack, always hoping for the best and verbalizing that “everything is going to be okay ” but secretly fretting that at any time the situation will go “pear-shaped.” It was a phrase that a former boss of mine used and it seemed to always describe the situation perfectly.

Growing up in the 60’s when I did, there wasn’t as much technology as we have today so we didn’t have thousands of channels to choose from. Really only the local channels- ABC, CBS and NBC plus a community access channel that hardly anyone watched. I remembered always waiting for Sunday Night when Disney came on, probably 8:00 and almost too late for my bedtime. It was something to look forward to, there wasn’t any binge watching a whole season in two days, you actually had to watch for the next week until the show came on.

People were always telling you as a kid, ” just wait until you are an adult, then you will understand how carefree being a kid is!” The younger kids wanted to be older, the pre-teens wanted to be able to drive and the teenagers wanted to be in their 20’s so they could move out of the house and have their own lives. Everyone was always looking ahead to the next chapter of life, always anticipating, impatiently waiting for the next step, marriage, house, kids, retirement, grandkids. Always wishing for time to speed up, milestones to pass, faster and faster it went as we go speeding down the road.

Now as I approach a milestone birthday in 2020, I want to push the slow motion button or even the pause. I’m amazed to find myself at this age and continually wonder how it all went so fast when it just seemed like yesterday that I was waiting for my name to be called to receive my high school diploma. I’m certain like everyone else, I’m still waiting for the answers to life’s questions and wondering how much longer it will be be before the Detroit Lions win the Super Bowl?