Tag Archives: Patience

Time goes by… so slowly

When I was at school I was a keen sportsman.  I used to participate in pretty much every sport I had the opportunity to.  I enjoyed participating for fun, but I really enjoyed competition.

Out of school activities changed a lot during my time at school, as teachers reduced the amount of extra-curricular activities they supported.  However, I was lucky enough to have a few years in which we had a full fixture list of Rugby, Football and Cricket matches against similar schools in the surrounding area.

During the shortest days of winter, some matches were held on Saturday mornings, but generally they took place after school.  The afternoons building up to a match were the longest ever.  Time passed slowly.  Double geography passed at a glacial pace.  Chemistry dragged like the half-life of uranium.  I didn’t do patience well.  I would spend the afternoon looking out of the window, excited about what was to come.

I’m not sure where you’d put my day dreams on this scale!

Over the years I haven’t got much better at patience.  The bigger the occasion, the worse I tend to be.

This week has been slow!

It’s not that life is dull, but in a week’s time we should be preparing to board the ferry to take us to the continent, the first day of cycling under our belts, on our way to Amsterdam.  I’m just excited!

I know it’ll be over in the blink of an eye, but it’s taking forever to arrive.  Easter seems to have switched April into slow-motion and the recent cold spell has introduced a dose of suspended animation.  I suspect early May will be no better.

I need to dig deep and find five days of patience… wish me luck!

Please wake me up on Tuesday morning!

Please wake me up on Tuesday morning!

Rain stops play

I am not good at patience.

An all too familiar scene!

I have always known that there are some professions that just aren’t for me.  I would struggle to be a Cricket Umpire, for example, not only because my eye-sight is rubbish, and getting worse, but because I would find it impossible to make decisions on when to stop / start playing because of weather… with me in charge, bad light would not be a factor, and only the heaviest of downpours would warrant a break for rain.

I remember being at school and looking out of the window, hoping and praying that the weather would improve so that we could compete in whichever sport was lined up for that afternoon / evening.  Whether it was the frost releasing its hold on the Rugby pitch, or the clouds dissipating so we could do athletics, there would often be doubt, and all too often, disappointment.

How the America’s Cup Race Director was able to make the calls he did is beyond me… wind too strong, wind too weak, wind in the wrong direction, even a perfectly reasonable race taking too long.  I know he had strict rules that he was enforcing, but they didn’t always feel like they were in the spirit of the event, particularly for the spectators.

For me, if there are two teams present and ready to compete, that’s exactly what they should do!

This would be a handy device for today’s conditions!  Unfortunately I didn’t pack mine!

Today is one of those “rain stops play” days.  A storm has blown in from Africa and thrown a spanner in the works of the resort we’re in.  Water sports have been suspended.  Even the cycling has been abandoned due to risk of being blown off or being struck by lightning.  To be fair, the weather is fairly severe; strong, gusty winds, heavy rain, thunder and lightning.  Safety first!

Today is therefore going to be a different day.  All activities have been moved inside.  There is significant competition for stations in the gym and in the indoor pool.  There seem to be groups of children in every nook and cranny around the hotel.  Everyone seems to be having fun!

I need to take a deep breath, wait patiently for my opportunity to do some exercise…

Wait a moment… it looks like there’s a break in the clouds… maybe, just maybe, I can get out for a ride, even if it is a quick one!!!