Spend All Your Time Waiting, For That Second Chance...

How much of our lives do we spend waiting? Waiting for things to change. Waiting for the big break. Waiting for a promotion. Waiting to be loved. We're always waiting for something. I've spent a great deal of my life-- waiting. I've waited for things to get better. I've waited for that perfect job. I've waited for the right time to possible start trying to have a baby. Just what the hell is it that I'm waiting for?

You know, when you're young, you can't wait to grow up. When you're in your tweens years, you can't wait to be 16, to get your drivers license and get out of the house. Then, 16 comes. At 16, you can't wait to be 18, because at 18, you can buy cigarettes, vote, and get into clubs. By most all standards, you're considered an adult. From age 18, you can't wait to be 21. Ah, 21, the liberating age where you can drink *legally*, and do what you want. You've waited all this time, hoping, aspiring, dreaming. The years fly by after you turn 21. Hell, I have no idea where 28 years have gone. The days seem to run into one another.

Back to the subject at hand, waiting. I remember something a woman said to me while I was working at Merle Norman back in 1999. She said, "I don't know why so many women in their late 20's are so bitter?" I believe I can finally answer that question. So many women in their late 20's have waited. Waited for the right one. Waited for the great job. Waited for a better opportunity to come around, instead of living in the here and now. We've waited so long for things to change, that we forgot to live in the meantime.

Living. We only get one chance at life. We may never find "the one". We may never get the "dream job" we've always wanted. We may never be able to have children. We may never be rich. The opportunities we're waiting for, may never present themselves. Does that mean we need to sit around and feel sorry for ourselves? Absolutely not! It means we need to LIVE. We need to embrace each day. We need to stop waiting for something to happen to us, and take the initiative to make it happen.

So what if we're not rich, famous, beautiful, or married to the man/woman of our dreams? Does that mean it won't happen? Maybe, maybe not, but what matters is what you do right now. Live. Right now. Pick up the phone and call a friend you haven't talked to in awhile. Take the time to notice how beautiful the stars look at night. Take the time to be thankful for where you are. No matter what your situation, it could always be worse. Never lose sight of your dreams, but don't let them cloud your life so much, that you spend your whole life waiting, instead of living.