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Thursday, December 17, 2015

Waiting

In life, we often find ourselves waiting for things. Sometimes it's things like waiting for dinner to cook (it smells so good, and you're so hungry, you just want to eat it NOW), waiting for the tap water to heat up, or waiting for that boring commercial break to finally end. Other times it's waiting for things you're looking forward to but seem so far away, like Christmas. Then there's the sort of waiting we absolutely hate. And if you're in a hurry, or so ill you could just expire right there in front of the vitamin aisle, it takes longer.
I remember when I was sick with bronchitis as a child. It was taking forever for the pharmacy to fill the prescription, and we had been waiting for a while. Feeling tired, sick, unhappy, and impatient, I started complaining about how long it was taking, and how ridiculous it was that we had to wait so long. One of the adults in line commented that I was saying what everyone else was thinking.
More recently, we went to get a tire replaced. The left front tire wasn't holding air very well, and we were tired of constantly having to pump air into it. So we waited while they changed and rotated the tires. And we waited. And we waited. I hadn't slept well, and was really tired that day. I eventually gave up on reading, as my mind would not focus. People came and went, and we were still there.
After a couple of hours, they finished, and we left. Later on, though, we discovered that we still had the bad tire; they replaced the wrong one. So we had to go back. Luckily, they still had the good tire they'd taken off previously. They put it back on and got rid of the bad one, no charge for their mistake. Even so, my mother isn't planning to return to that place.

Luckily, we generally aren't left waiting forever for something to happen. The wondrous-smelling dinner eventually is ready to eat, the tap water heats up, commercial breaks don't last forever, and Christmas Day finally comes. Although we'd love to get rid of the entire concept of having to wait for things, waiting is a part of life, and we must accept it despite the frustration that sometimes comes with it.

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