One of the most difficult tasks a human being can assume is the job of learning how to wait patiently and optimistically. The cartoon figure of a father-to-be pacing nervously up and down a hospital hall while awaiting the arrival of his firstborn always brings a knowing smile. It seems the anxiety and expectation can never be exaggerated.
We wait for babies to smile, talk, crawl and walk. We watch and wait as they grow into toddlers, preschoolers, and onward through their adolescence into a companionable adulthood. In the process, our lives entwine and sometimes entangle.