On Waiting Well…

Tina Thrussell

I recently read a post on facebook that reminded me of one of our visits to stay in the home of our good friend, James Downie, in Mexico for a week. I don’t remember exactly what we were talking about, but it must’ve been something that our impatient Neil said – because heaven knows I am never impatient! (yeah, right!) – that made our friend smile and say, in a very James way, “Be patient.” Big pause, then he said, “A little.” After another big pause, then he added, “Longer”.

I roared. I found this SO funny! Why? I’m not sure exactly. I guess it was the the irony of needing more patience in order to be patient!

Back to the fb post – a repost from an email message from Darling Media that I found myself wishing I had written! I absolutely love the closing paragraph so I share this with you now:

“I live across the street from what might be the best bakery in New York City. It has a pink façade and a hand-written menu featuring madeleines, baguettes and croissants filled with the flavors of the season. They can only serve one customer at a time, so the queue on a Saturday morning stretches well around the block.

When I get in line, I have two options—wait or wait well. I could pass the time irritated and impatient—scrolling through squares of comparison with my head down in detachment, worlds away in the mindless scanning of my phone.

I could draw my eyes up to see the world around me—smelling the wafting scent of butter and taking in the sun-drenched streets of New York and the parade of people alive with their morning pursuits.

If we’ve learned anything in 2020, it’s that waiting is inevitable. We wait for answers, reprieve, the light to turn green and the seasons to change. We wait for a partner, a child, that post-interview email and test results to be returned.

The question isn’t whether or not we will wait, but how we will choose to wait. Will we be irritated—lost in our phones, crippled by comparison and detached? Will we be alive—awake to the world around us with our faces turned toward the sun? Let’s shift our perspectives to the present moment and the good it brings. In this place, we will find gratitude and the strength to wait well.

With love,
Bailey Price, Darling Family

During these often trying times, we wish you the ability to stay in the present moment, and the strength to wait well.

May you be patient… a little… longer.