Learning To Wait

One of our most disagreeable everyday experiences is waiting. Watch motorists stopped at a traffic light and count the smiling faces. There aren’t many. We grow weary just thinking about the long lines at the supermarket checkout counter or waiting-rooms where we sit wondering how soon the doctor or dentist will see us. Then there are the friends who are always late. We agree on a time and place to meet knowing in advance that we will be waiting on the corner or in the lobby for a long time. Usually, our late friends aren’t inconsiderate-just pre-occupied (or so they say). They may be like the absent-minded professor who was walking down the street and stopped to chat with a friend. As their conversation ended, the professor asked, “Which way was I going when we met?” The friend pointed out the direction and the professor exclaimed, “Then I’ve had my lunch,” and went on his way. Fortunately, our tardy friends know they haven’t had lunch…