Waiting

 Do you like waiting? I am guessing that most of us do not! Whether it is waiting for a bus that is late, or waiting in the supermarket queue, it is usually difficult for us humans to wait. We constantly plan and anticipate the future and so the uncertainty of having to wait makes us uncomfortable. The rock band Queen have a song with the lyrics: “I want it all, and I want it now!” This epitomises our modern culture! We want an instant reply to our text messages, or when we ring a doorbell, we expect it to be answered immediately. We really do not like having to wait!

In my life, I have learned some good lessons about the importance of waiting. Once I was in an international group who were participating in the Mass with Pope John Paul II in Toronto, Canada. Each of us would have a particular role in the liturgy, and the leaders would not tell us what our role was until the day before, so for a week of events we had to wait and wonder. They reminded us constantly: “participate, don’t anticipate”. It was a good lesson that I never forgot. We can participate in the present moment and live life much more fully than if we constantly anticipate the future.

I had an elderly grandaunt who was severely disabled. When I called to visit her and rang the doorbell, it took a long time for her to struggle out of her chair, take her walking aid and slowly move step by step to the front door. For security she often had double locks on the door, and I had to wait patiently there until she got the door opened and welcomed me inside. She told me that often many people went away before she could get to answer the door and she always thanked me for waiting.

Some waiting is joyful, like waiting for the birth of a much-wanted child or waiting for the return home of a loved one. When we find ourselves in joyful waiting, why not just savour the experience of the joy instead of wanting the outcome immediately?

Other times, our waiting is anxious and stressful, such as waiting for news of a medical test or prognosis on the illness of a loved one. In these times, we need the support of others in our waiting. This is why I chose the image of four Sisters with candles to accompany this reflection. In dark times of waiting, like the faithful Jewish people who waited centuries of oppression and suffering for the coming of the Messiah, our strength will be found in the community of support around us.

St Paul wrote to the Romans: “…hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently” (Rom 8:24-25). Patience is one of the key virtues of a Christian, and it is a beautiful virtue. Isn’t it true that we cannot learn patience unless we are in situations where we need to be patient? So in our waiting, instead of feeling frustration perhaps we can see it as a learning experience to better ourselves?

Mary teaches us to be patient during these Advent days. We cannot hurry God’s plan. Let us make good use of these last days of waiting for the birth of Jesus. Whatever type of waiting we experience – whether it is joyful or anxious – let us remember that the One who is born on Christmas night is called Emmanuel – “God-with-us” – and he is with us at every moment of whatever the future holds!