Patience...

Patience...

My perspective on patience has changed a lot in the last few years. Maybe being middle-aged does that to you.

Used to be, patience is what you did to stop your foot from tapping when you queued for tickets, or registered for college classes, or some such thing. I always hated standing in line. Still do. I go out of my way to avoid it. But I've learned that patience is more about spanning months or years, not a 30 minute wait.

But it is more than just the time span that has changed.

I think I used to think of patience as a problem of how to distract myself so I wasn't annoyed by the wait. Now I'm more aware that I make choices, and it's harder to feel impatient when you see that you have options and you've made a choice to live with the wait.

But there is even more: Now I find myself paying attention to what's going on in the wait. Well - if a wait is going to span years, I better not be distracting myself.

Which reminds me of Mr. Holland's Opus.

And who was it said "Life is what happens while you're busy making other plans."?

Which reminds me of my Dad's email signature, which he started using in his 80s:

That lyf so short, the craft so long to lerne
Chaucer quoting Hippocrates

Note to L: The incense burner works great, albeit a little funky.