Patience Waiting

By John Herlihy

Those who are impatient are simply in haste,

Those patient never consider waiting as waste.

Some traditions claim that patience is dutiful,

Other traditions say that patience is beautiful.

Patience a vagabond in search of rest,

Why rush in the breech to settle for less.

The voice of patience never gives itself away,

Its rhythm hums in the same way people pray.

Patience a seam that runs through life’s cloth,

Smoothing rough edges to make them soft.

Patience another country we accept as our own,

On an ancient parchment map from light sewn.

Patience a devoted friend always by your side,

In silent devotion there with you to confide.

Patience wears the shadowy cloak of a thief,

That steals away all doubt and assures relief.

Patience waits behind a veil of invisibility,

Its enduring calm sharpens its visibility.

Patience a brother who takes you by the hand,

Eternity the resolution all hardship to withstand.

Patience smothers time in the seconds of the wait,

Solutions come quicker with endless time as bait.

Patience with its hood, waiting in the wings,

Patience always waiting, and in waiting it sings.