When you’re in your 80s, it’s not unusual to spend a lot of time in waiting rooms.  The one pictured is quite nice.   I took the photo while waiting for Paul to get his eyes examined yesterday.  As we sat there for 15 minutes, (we always arrive early) Paul mentioned that we had to stop meeting this way.  I’ve noticed a lot of changes as time progresses.  Most of these areas are filled with fairly comfortable chairs and decorated in rather quiet colors of beige or grey.  Walls usually include huge paintings to liven things up a bit.  There used to be lots of magazines on the tables to thumb through while you wait, but you no longer see those.  Today, most folks are glued to their phones instead.  I imagine this is for the better, since you don’t know what kind of germs you might pick up from those magazines.

I’ve also begun to rate waiting rooms. Most of them are pretty generic.  Some are filled with light and are coated with white sterile walls, while others are comforting and good for meditating.  Most folks don’t stop to think about the decorating of these rooms. Our oldest daughter is an interior designer for such spaces and much of what I’m talking about is considered in the plans.  When you’re a patient, you aren’t really interested in the decor, but when you’re waiting for someone to see the doctor, your eyes tend to wander.  I’m a people person, so I enjoy watching others.  Sometimes you see worry and anxiety covering their faces.  Other times, they may be in a hurry and frustrated because of the wait.  Some are so into their phones that they don’t hear when their name is called.  Some have children with them, causing a brief escape from worry. These little ones become the entertainment for those who wait.

Some rooms have candy dishes with delicious things to nibble on as you sit there.  The oncology waiting room is especially good for that.  They have the most delightful treats.  Some provide coffee with all the fixings or water dispensers if you’re thirsty or in need of caffeine.  They all have hand sanitizer, which your never saw before COVID.  I suppose I might make a career out of rating waiting rooms.  There have been a lot of them lately.

Waiting isn’t easy.  You can do so in a well decorated room or while waiting for the sun to rise. We’re hoping for a good diagnosis, an answer, a look at something beautiful or the future.  Our perspective is going to change the way we wait. We can dwell on the outcome, or we can welcome it.  It takes a patient person to be a patient.  Even when our minds wander, or negative thoughts get in the way, your time can be used to pray, to watch, to listen – to plan – or all of those things.

Romans 8:18   “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”

1 John 3:2  “Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.”

isaiah 40:31  “But those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”

So, maybe our time on earth is like being in a waiting room, or a holding pattern.  We’re here to experience the trials and tribulations of living along with the beauty of God’s creation and love.  Soon the waiting will ending and we will experience paradise.