Wait and See

Age… twenty-one years old. Relationship status… single and waiting for something or someone, but not sure what. Currently… sitting in a café a la Place de la Sorbonne.

I’m sipping on a cup of chocolat chaud and one word comes to mind. Waiting. This is a word that, though you may not think you use a lot, happens to find its way into our thoughts and conversations on a regular basis. Tsk, tsk…always waiting. We are waiting for the check. Waiting to meet your friend. Waiting to receive your exam grade. Waiting for your next period (that one is for the ladies). Waiting for the bill. Waiting for the dog to pee. Waiting for your skin to clear up. “Waiting for the world to change,” as John Mayer would put it. Waiting until the next day to begin your diet. Waiting for your friends to get a clue. Waiting for the next paycheck. Waiting for that special someone.

Sure, in the meantime we are busy doing all the other things we have scribbled in our daily planner. But often we wait. In terms of waiting for the one, is that the norm for every man and woman, boy and girl? Eventually, many people marry, or end up with someone for the rest of their lives. In between we spend most of our time dating different people. But what does it mean to wait for someone? Essentially, it means that it is in the cards for us to eventually meet our compatible other. All of the dates and meetings that we have with the opposite sex are like tests; getting the feel for the person across the table from you. We carefully look into their eyes and examine their potential as a lover. This “test” goes for everyone we romantically see, whether they’re walking past us or sitting across the restaurant.

It seems romantic doesn’t it? Waiting for the cliché lightning bolt. Walking down the street, glancing into the eyes of a stranger. But love will come along one day, maybe even more than once. Just you wait.