She was always an hour or two late!

Greetings!

My loved ones picked me up to go to the zoo with them.  My daughter-in-law was glad that they could get ready in a short time.  With 3 small kids, it was indeed a task.  "Yes, both of you (incl. our son) are very organized and efficient," I complimented.

As we talked, my daughter-in-law recalled while she was growing up, her aunt always showed up an hour or two after the said time.  I asked how her family felt about the aunt's tardiness.  My daughter-in-law laughed.  She said: "Our family tried everything, but nothing seemed to work.  Eventually, we were kind of good spirited about it for we knew we could not change her except when she was ready to.  Luckily, with age, my aunt is often on time now."

From my own experiences, it was true we could not make others change except if they wanted to.  Sometimes we might think we had changed someone, or took credit for the change in others.  However, in truth, the change had to come within him or her.  It was a good thing that my daughter-in-law's family learned to look at the aunt's tardiness with good spirit.  I could imagine they had a good laugh while waiting for her instead of getting all upset over it.

I once had a friend who had a hard time keeping up with her words.  Consequently, I held a negative view of her.  When I did, my peace was disturbed.  It took me some time to realize that to know her weakness did not equate to holding a negative judgment against her within me.  We all had our own weaknesses to overcome.  Some people's weaknesses might be more extreme than others.  It was my friend's struggle to overcome hers.  I should withhold my judgment, and should not be too easy to condemn.

This morning we wake up in the 30s (degrees).  Take care and keep yourself warm.

Love,
Q of D