Exercises in Patience

One would think by now, I'd have being patient down pat. After all,I am a 
mother of a three year old and 18 month old. How could I be anything but
patient? Think again. It's something I've had to work on throughout the years. 
I don't like to wait, whether it's waiting for my three year old to finish her milk 
(after forty five minutes of playing and blowing bubbles), or discovering 
different ways to get my youngest to eat those things necessary for normal 
growth and development. He doesn't like meat or veggies. Dinner especially
can be a struggle. Even back in nursing school, waiting for test results was 
tortuous. Thankfully, some of our instructors allowed us to check our answers 
as soon as our tests were handed in. 


The same is true in writing. Once I have written a new story, my natural inclination 
is to wish I could see it in print tomorrow. This whole business of going through "a 
process" has been a challenge. It's over a year into that process, and I know I 
have a few things left to do. One short term goal of mine is to get some stories 
published in one or more children's magazines. It's definitely a requirement on
my writing "resume." I submitted a story for a certain magazine last February, but
never heard back from them. Although I was disappointed, last week I decided
to try again. Having done some research online, I chose a different children's 
magazine, and wrote a story tailored to their requirements. 


Upon completing the story, I could barely wait to mail it in. Thankfully, I did wait
long enough to catch a few typos and errors, and ended up mailing it last Friday. 
Now for the waiting... . Need I say more? Since it may be up to three months
before I hear anything, I should focus my attention on other things, but that is 
easier said than done. To quote Inigo Montoya from The Princess Bride, "I 
hate wait." That pretty much sums it up. However, I am thankful to have God's
help in any area I struggle in, including patience. So, while this "process" is
quite the exercise in patience for me, I take comfort in 2 Thessalonians 3:5
"May the Lord lead your hearts into a full understanding and expression of 
the love of God and the patient endurance that comes from Christ."