等待也是一種智慧。人生，要學(xué)會(huì)堅(jiān)持，也要學(xué)會(huì)放棄；要學(xué)會(huì)尋找，也要學(xué)會(huì)等待。等待并不是膽小，而是準(zhǔn)備；不是懦弱，而是智慧。機(jī)會(huì)需要把握，也需要等待。如果不等準(zhǔn)備好便出發(fā)，那么可能就是失敗。

The older I get （Im 53） the more I realize that life often moves at a slower pace than Id like. This runs contrary to the view today that life is moving faster than the speed of light， that were all running around so quickly that we dont have the time to think. Yes， we have picked up the pace due to technology， but there still exists a time frame that sometimes runs as slowly as snails.

隨著年齡增長(zhǎng)（我53歲），我愈發(fā)意識(shí)到生活的節(jié)奏比我想的要慢得多。這與今天的關(guān)于生活的速度比光速快，我們四處奔忙而沒(méi)有時(shí)間去思考的觀點(diǎn)背道而馳。是的，科技的發(fā)展讓我們得跟上節(jié)奏，但仍有這樣的一種時(shí)間框架，有時(shí)和蝸牛一樣慢。

Furthermore， I have learned that rushing things can often be a form of suicide. If we try to speed up the natural pace of existence， it can be harmful.

此外，我知道，行事匆匆往往像是自殺的一種方式。如果我們?cè)噲D加快自然的速度，則可能是無(wú)益的。

Lately， Ive noticed the importance of waiting patiently in three areas. Lets look at them below.

最近，我注意到了耐心等待的重要性的三個(gè)方面。讓我們來(lái)一起看看。

Waiting out people to respond to you.

等待人們對(duì)你的回應(yīng)。

I learned the importance of this kind of waiting when I was dating my future husband. Stephen was a shy， cautious1 young man. I fell in love with him at first sight， and I really wanted to call him and move the relationship forward. Stephen wasnt calling me， and I so wanted to communicate with him. But I knew if I was too pushy2， he might be turned off.

當(dāng)我和我的未來(lái)丈夫約會(huì)的時(shí)候，我了解到了這種等待的重要性。史蒂芬是一個(gè)害羞，謹(jǐn)慎的年輕人。我第一眼看到他就愛(ài)上了他。我真的很想打電話給他，把關(guān)系向前推進(jìn)一點(diǎn)。史蒂芬沒(méi)有打電話給我，我很想和他聊一下。但我知道如果我太積極了，他可能就被嚇跑了。

In a kind of “l(fā)ove promise，” I purchased a tea set for him， which included a tea cup， honey sticks and a box of peppermint3 tea. I loved tea， and I wanted to share this delicious drink with him. While I was ordering the set through the mail， I prayed a silent prayer， “Dear Lord， I am purchasing this tea set with the hopes that one day soon Stephen and I can sit down and share a wonderful cup of tea and get to know each other.”

沉浸在一種“愛(ài)的承諾”中，我買了一套茶具給他，包括一個(gè)茶壺，蜂蜜攪拌棒和一盒薄荷茶。我喜歡茶，我想和他一起分享這美味的飲料。當(dāng)我在郵件中訂購(gòu)的時(shí)候，我默默祈禱著，“上帝啊，我購(gòu)買了這套茶具，希望不久后有一天，史蒂芬和我可以坐下一起分享一壺美妙的茶，互相了解?！?/p>

In short， I waited him out. And about two weeks after our first date， he called.

總之，我等他出來(lái)。我們的第一次約會(huì)后的大約兩個(gè)星期后，他打了電話。

And we did drink our tea.

我們確實(shí)一起喝了茶。

The rest is history. Weve been married 17 years.

剩下的就是歷史了。我們結(jié)婚17年了。

Im so glad I waited for him to call me.

我很高興當(dāng)時(shí)等著他給我打電話。

Waiting out things in the workplace.

在工作場(chǎng)所等待事情。

As a writer， I have to wait for editors to make their moves. I cant be emailing them every five minutes to find out if they love my work. Sometimes， I have to wait months for editors to make decisions. And this is the age of the Internet！I remember the olden days of snail mail. Things really took a long time then.

作為一個(gè)作家，我必須等待編輯們的行動(dòng)。我不能每隔五分鐘就給他們發(fā)一次電子郵件來(lái)詢問(wèn)他們是否喜歡我的作品。有時(shí)，我不得不花幾個(gè)月的時(shí)間來(lái)等待編輯做出決定。現(xiàn)在是互聯(lián)網(wǎng)的時(shí)代了！我記得過(guò)去蝸牛般速度的郵件。那個(gè)時(shí)候事情真的很花時(shí)間。

I have to say that over the 35 years that Ive been a professional writer， and Ive gotten used to waiting.

我不得不說(shuō)，在過(guò)去的35年，我一直是個(gè)專業(yè)的作家，我已經(jīng)習(xí)慣了等待。

I think of the old motto， “Good things come to those who wait.”

我想起了一句古老的格言：“好東西是等來(lái)的?！?/p>

Waiting out bad situations.

等待糟糕的情況結(jié)束。

Often， a bad situation doesnt disapp-

ear instantly. This is unfortunate， but true.

通常情況下，糟糕的情況不會(huì)立即結(jié)束。這是不幸的，但是真實(shí)的。

For instance， my son was having some behavioral problems at school. It seemed that he was getting into trouble every day. The problems appeared to be stemming from4 his attempts to get used to sixth grade. My son didnt do well with new experiences. Conse-

quently， he sometimes acted out negatively.

例如，我的兒子在學(xué)校里言行舉止上有一些問(wèn)題。他似乎每天都在惹麻煩。問(wèn)題在于他試圖適應(yīng)六年級(jí)。他面對(duì)新的體驗(yàn)無(wú)所適從。因此，他有時(shí)表現(xiàn)出消極的行為。

But as the weeks passed， he got used to the new procedures， students and teachers， and the behavioral problems faded away.

但幾周過(guò)去之后，他習(xí)慣了新的進(jìn)度、新的同學(xué)和老師，于是他的問(wèn)題消失了。

Things improved， granted at a slow pace， but they improved. Thank you， Lord.

事情有所改善，雖然速度很慢，但總算是情況愈變愈好。感謝上帝。

In conclusion， sometimes its best to exercise extreme patience， to go with lifes slow flow.

總之，有時(shí)最好鍛煉一下極度的耐心，去與生活的慢流同步。

Resolution takes time.

解決問(wèn)題需要時(shí)間。

Best we learn this as soon as possible.

我們最好盡快學(xué)會(huì)這一點(diǎn)。