The Space Between

Hey girlfriend,

I had an insight this weekend.

I was driving down a rural highway

when I came to an abrupt halt.

A fallen tree blocked the road.

Cars reversed and turned around,

searching for another way.

I stayed.

I parked and waited.

My heart wavered

between doubt and trust.

But I stayed.

And after twenty minutes,

the road opened again.

As I continued forward,

I was grateful.

My commitment to wait

asked for twenty minute of my time,

but had I been determined

to take matters into my own hands..

my detour would have demanded another hour.

It made me wonder:

How often have I detoured my own life

in search of speed?

How many times did a quest for convenience

lead to further inconvenience?

How many times have I rushed the process

only to return later and do it again,

slower, wiser, more humbled?

How many words have I spoken too soon,

only to wish I had listened longer?

How many connections could have been saved

with an intentional pause,

instead of an impulse to react?

We live in an age of convenience.

A world addicted to now.

Instant answers.

Minute meals.

Overnight arrivals.

Rapid results.

What once required

waiting..

saving..

earning..

now arrives to us

on borrowed time and money.

Even relationships

that were once grown patiently,

season by season,

are reduced to a single swipe.

Here today, gone tomorrow.

And I am not exempt.

I, too, have chased quick outcomes.

Life has gently taught me

the quiet reward of investment.

Patience is not passive.

It is an active dedication.

Patience is a virtue

like honesty or compassion:

unseen, unpurchasable, unfakeable..

it is formed only through practice.

It arrives only to those

who righteously earn it.

Patience is strength

masked as stillness.

It is learning to sit in the in-between,

trusting that something greater

is arranging the path ahead.

It is believing that pauses

are not punishment,

but protection.

To be patient is to whisper,

I don’t understand,

but I trust.

So the next time

the road is blocked

and plans are thwarted,

when anxiety rises

and urgency tightens,

breathe.

Let the road clear.

Give life a second

to work itself out..

As it always has,

and as it always will.

Until next time.

xx