“My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning.” – Psalm 130:6
“The Waiting Place . . . for people just waiting. Waiting for a train to go or a bus to come, or a plane to go or the mail to come, or the rain to go or the phone to ring, or the snow to snow, or waiting around for a Yes or No, or waiting for their hair to grow. Everyone is just waiting. . . Waiting for the fish to bite, or waiting for wind to fly a kite, or waiting around for Friday night, or waiting, perhaps, for their Uncle Jake, or a pot to boil, or a Better Break, or a string of pearls, or a pair of pants, or a wig with curls, or Another Chance. Everyone is just waiting. . . NO! That’s not for you! Somehow you’ll escape all that waiting and staying. You’ll find the bright places where Boom Bands are playing. With banner flip-flapping, once more you’ll ride high! Ready for anything under the sky. Ready because you’re that kind of a guy! . . . Oh, the places you’ll go!” – Dr. Seuss
Like it or not we all enter The Waiting Place from time to time, don’t we? We are not patient in waiting, though, especially in this age of technology where there is instant access to almost everything with the mere push of a button. Besides, we are doers who have been taught to believe that activity is a virtue and idleness is not, and waiting feels like idleness, a waste of time.
Waiting is not unlike what St. John of the Cross describes as “the dark night of the soul.” Yet, the “dark night” of which he speaks is not bad or destructive as we might believe, nor is its purpose to punish or afflict us in any way. Rather, it is a time that is meant to set us free to anticipate, dream, and prepare for what is to come even when it feels as if it never will. It is simply The Waiting Place as Dr. Seuss calls it, a place to get ready for when the perfect job opportunity comes along, or the right person enters our lives; the proper treatment for healing, or relief after a long struggle; acceptance of an application, or money to make a purchase; the birth of a child, or an answer to prayer. Yes, sooner or later you’ll escape all that waiting and staying and find yourself in bright places where Boom Bands are playing. Then . . . . . . Oh, the places you’ll go!