The waiting game
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Lately it seems like I spend most of my time waiting for something. And it's no big consolation that I'm not alone. Recently published statistics show, for example, that we spend an average of 653 hours of our lives waiting for buses or trains and no less than seven years waiting just to fall asleep! (It's worth noting, however, that once that wait is over, we spend a further twenty-six years actually sleeping.)
It feels like we wait longer for some things. Since I take the bus to and from work every day, for example, it often feels like I'm waiting an age at a bus stop for the next one to come. But then I know I'm probably not. Since experience has taught me to time my journeys so that I'm unlikely to have to spend too long waiting—and with my normal bus running every 15-30 minutes—even if I miss one, I shouldn't be waiting too long. It nevertheless feels somewhat more drawn out.
As for sleep, some nights I can lie awake for hours before I finally drift off. As is typical, this is more common when I need to get up early in the morning and could do with getting in as much sleep as possible. In those cases, I can usually guarantee that I'll be able to watch the clock disappointedly as I work out how many hours' sleep I could get should I fall asleep now...
Much like when waiting for a delivery, knowing how to pass the time is difficult. One knows one shouldn't start something too involved, because inevitably the thing you're waiting for will come just as you get into it. But if you start something smaller, no doubt you'll be done before your moment arrives and then be faced with the same dilemma again. Your hands are tied and the only option is to pass the time with the act of waiting itself.
I've been searching for a snappy quote on the subject, but most of the ones I've found have been a bit vague. There is, however, a rather nice proverb that reads:
"Between the wish and the thing life lies waiting."
I don't know the source, but the content makes sense. Today I have a wish, but the thing which might be able to grant it has yet to materialise. And so, once again, I've found myself waiting. There is perhaps an irony here: that I've finally resolved to not just wait for something to happen, but to actively make it happen, and yet I now find myself waiting for the opportunity to do even that. Perhaps it's just one of those things we're just not meant to be able to avoid.
But then, some things are worth waiting for. And hopefully those things I've wished for the longest will have been worth the wait. For the time being, I'm attempting to be optimistic on the subject and will continue to wait patiently for my opportunities to come up. And once I've done that, I can wait to see what I'll be waiting for next.