by Lisa Jordan, @lisajordan
Several years ago, I celebrated a friend’s birthday by attending a pottery painting party at a local studio with our circle of friends.
We had two hours to choose a piece of greenware—clay that has been shaped, but not fired yet—and paint it any way we desired.
We laughed, ate the most fabulous cupcakes and celebrated our friend while we added colorful designs to our pieces. I chose to paint a tall mug for tea. I painted the base an aqua color, then added fun polka dots in several different colors. I really liked the way it turned out once I stopped stressing about how to paint it.
Once our pottery party came to an end, we cleaned up and left our pieces behind so they could be glazed, then fired in the kiln. That step is essential to strengthen the fragile clay into ceramic, which allows it to be used for the designed purpose. Without the heat and firing, the clay would fall apart.
As we left and went to lunch to continue the birthday celebration, we talked about how our painted designs would turn out. The one phrase I heard over and over was, “I can’t wait…”
Waiting a week for a mug to be fired isn’t that big of a deal.
However, during this time of 2020 being turned on its head with the Coronavirus, many of us have experienced different types of waiting…or we may be in a season of waiting that seems to be lingering forever. We can become easily frustrated, weary and discouraged, especially if you’ve been yearning for something for so long.
Believe it or not, though, but there is joy in the waiting. Unfortunately many of us can’t see it while we’re going through that season, but hindsight shows us the blessings.
Here are a few lessons we can learn from waiting:
- Find joy in the journey and celebrate your milestones. If you’re writing for publication, getting the contract may seem like the grand prize, but what about the milestones you’ve accomplished to make that happen? Celebrate completing your rough draft. Celebrate finishing the editing process. Celebrate having the courage to submit your project. You just surpassed what many wannabe writers haven’t managed to accomplish. There will be a day when things will be moving too fast for you to enjoy the greenware stage.
- Everyone waits. While you’re waiting for that acceptance to arrive in your inbox or for your phone to ring, remember everyone waits. Agents wait to hear from editors. Editors wait to hear from pub boards. Pub boards wait for accounting. Not to mention, agents and editors have other clients to work with as well. Just like the greenware needs to be fired to become stronger, waiting tempers us to become stronger if we’re willing to use those delays to grow our skills.
- Start something new. One of the quickest ways to take your mind off the waiting is to begin a new story. There’s something magical in the brainstorming and fastdrafting process. Once you get immersed in your new story, you may even be surprised by how much time had passed and the waiting didn’t seem as long as you had expected.
- Be ready. When my friends and I picked up our fired pieces, we were so excited to use them. They were ready for the purpose they were designed. While you’re waiting, invest that time into learning the craft. Hone your skills. Build your tribe. That way, when you get the call, you’ll be ready. Because, friends, life gets crazy once you’re on deadline, especially if you’re working full-time, juggling parenting and life, and fulfilling other obligations.
Taking time to embrace those moments as we’re striving for our goals allows us to live in the moment, preparing for what we’ve been called to do…what we’ve been trained to do. Then you may be able to look back and realize the beauty found in learning to wait.
Just-for-now could become forever…
They agreed to help each other out.
No one mentioned falling in love.
Back home after losing her job, Isabella Bradley plans to stay only long enough to save her father’s diner, but she can’t do it alone. Her childhood friend Tucker Holland has the perfect solution—he will renovate the diner if she’ll be a nanny for his twins. But as Isabella and Tucker reconnect, their arrangement begins to feel a lot less temporary…
Heart, home, and faith have always been important to Lisa Jordan, so writing stories with those elements come naturally. Represented by Rachelle Gardner of Books & Such Literary Management, Lisa is an award-winning author for Love Inspired, writing contemporary Christian romances that promise hope and happily ever after. Her latest book, A Love Redeemed, releases in September 2020. She is the Operations Manager for Novel.Academy, powered by My Book Therapy. Happily married to her own real-life hero for over thirty years, Lisa and her husband have two grown sons. When she isn’t writing, Lisa enjoys family time, kayaking, good books, and being creative with her friends. Visit her at lisajordanbooks.com.