Gratitude in the Waiting

No great thing is created suddenly, 

any more than a bunch of grapes or a fig.  

If you tell me that you desire a fig, 

I  answer that there 

must be time.  

Let it first blossom, 

then bear fruit, 

then ripen.

Life is full of waiting.  It is also full of wonder and beauty.  Sometimes, we are so impatient for what we want, that we forget to find joy in what is already there.  We live in a world where you can get anything you want if you have the money to pay for it.  We get fruits and vegetables from other countries with different climates.  We get whatever we desire at the touch of a button or the click of a mouse.  We can be rude and angry and mean to each other when we are thwarted in our desires.  

In short, there are too many times that we don't act very Christ-like, and nearly all of those times have to do with patience.  I am not always patient.  I wish I could be.  I love the person who speaks softly and never gets angry.  I am someone who doesn't like contention in any part of my life.  

Not at work, not at home, not at church, not even in the store when I am not involved.  

This year, I am trying my best to lose weight.  It is not easy.  It is not fast.  It is pretty much one of the hardest and infinitely slowest things I have tried to do.  I hate that the weight doesn't come off as fast as it went on!  I hate that my body doesn't look the way I envision it.  But most of all, I hate the lack of self control that got me this way in the first place!  So now, I am working on weight.  

For me, the blossoming would be the desire for change.  Seeing the need in my own life.  Wanting it bad enough to try harder to be better.  

We have a cherry tree that does't bear much fruit.  The mountains are a cruel taskmaster and weatherman.  My area gets warm, the buds and flowers come out, and the tree blooms with a beautiful white bouquet.  However, just a few week later, with all the blossoms in full bloom, the weather changes and the blossoms wither and die.  The tree never gets to bear fruit because the blossoms weren't on it long enough.

So, after the blossoms, it bears fruit (if you are lucky!)  After the beginning of the work, you start to reap the rewards.  Hopefully I will see the difference on the scale and in the mirror.  Hopefully my waist will shrink and I will notice.  

Only after the fruit is on the tree does it ripen.  I have eaten unripe fruit.  It does not taste good.  It is too tart and too hard.  So, part of losing weight is to wait for my body to change.  It is to hold fast to what I am doing and hold on to my patience and wait for the finish.  

Only with patience do we see what can happen.  Only time will tell the ending.  

And so, I wait, with baited breath, for the future.