Taking Notes During The Pauses

Today, I'm thinking about all of the things that require time to ripen.

Of course, there is the obvious: bananas, apples, strawberries, tulips. But what about the other things that bloom: a love affair, a friendship, ability, faith?

Even the vegetable barley soup that I made today will improve as it thickens. Time is required for the broth to absorb everything that the vegetables have to offer. The barley flexes, grows bulky with confidence and presence, as the hours progress.

It is difficult to button my jeans when they first come out of the dryer. They need to give way to my shape. My haircut, so edgy the first day, is a field of wayward weeds by days two and three--I need to learn which products suit the the different lengths, and the landscape of my complexion.

A child's abililty to put together a puzzle improves--and with it comes the trust that the pieces will all be there.

Illness that begins as scratch in the throat, a slight ache in the back, eventually explodes into a wind ensemble of sneezes, the drumbeat of coughs, and the big band bass of a fever.

There is something to be said for patience, for allowing each moment the space that it needs. There is something to be said for sitting back and watching events unfold without a vested interest.

That is what I hope to do today. I want to listen and see. I want to do it without judgement.

And during the pause that is named Waiting, I want to take notes.