Slow and Steady

Lindsey had always been an ambitious girl; a real go getter! From the time her feet hit the floor as a toddler, she was determined to do everything she set her little mind to do. As a matter of fact, she started running before she could even walk. She would pull her little body up to a standing position and then take off running. Lindsey's parents had to sometimes confine her to her walker for a while just to get her to slow down.

"Slow down"!!! Her mother would find herself yelling these words everyday as Lindsey grew up. Ironically, her favorite story as a child was the one about the tortoise and the hare. Lindsey's mother would always say things like:

"Girl, if you don't slow down you're going to miss something" or "Patience is a virtue" or "Take some time to enjoy your life, don't rush through it" or " You don't have to be in a hurry all the time"!

Lindsey could remember all of her mother's "famous quotes". Besides, how could she forget the things she had been hearing all of her life? All 22 years of it.

Lindsey was now a Senior in college ready to graduate and continue on to medical school. She dreamed of being a Pediatrician since she was in 7thgrade. She was a star on the college track team and a pretty good student. She earned straight B's every semester in every class the entire time she had been in school.

Now, Lindsey had the potential to be a straight A student but she would often get penalized for grammatical errors on research papers or missing questions on an exam or sometimes not correctly following directions on an assignment. Her track team coach always advised her to pace herself. Coach Mays led her team to many victories by encouraging them to start off slow, check out their competitors and then pick up speed in the end. This was advice that Lindsey should have been using in her daily life as well, knowing her "track record". Her speed on the track was effortless and that is where she made the best use of her speed.

For the past two years, Lindsey had shared an off-campus apartment with Josie. Although they had become really good friends, Lindsey didn't mind when she had the apartment to herself. Josie would be gone to her hometown for a week to be with her family as they mourned the death and funeralised her grandmother. Although these were unfortunate circumstances, Lindsey appreciated the quiet time and planned to use the time to complete her graduation application and finish up some assignments.

Lindsey was in class at the time when Josie went home. Josie had just sent her a text letting her know she was gone and that she would be back in a week. When she got home that day, she noticed a small box wrapped in brown paper on the coffee table in the living room. She just assumed Josie left it there. It was an interesting looking package and she was tempted to open it but she rejected Josie's privacy. They were close friends and sometimes would call each other when either of them would receive a package, giving each other permission to open it and see what was inside but this time Lindsey was against it. She decided that she didn't want to bother her friend during this challenging time in her life.

Everytime Lindsey walked past that box, her curiosity increased; especially since there was no label or writing on it. "Who sends mail like that these days"? she wondered. The more she looked at the box the more suspicious she got. Finally, she had decided to forget about it. She knew Josie would only be gone one more day and after that, her curiosity would be a thing of the past.

Lindsey had picked Josie up from the airport and they made it home just as the mailman was leaving. They were both anxiously awaiting letters that would notify them of all of their graduation details. Both ladies had received emails the day before informing them of when their letters should arrive. Lindsey got mail from their shared mailbox and they entered their apartment. As she sorted through what was mostly junk mail, sure enough both ladies had letters from their university.

Before either of the anxious soon to be college graduates opened their letters, Josie noticed the brown paper box and said "Oh, I'm sorry friend, but that's your package. It arrived the day I left. The label was loose and fell off as I was coming up the stairs. I'm sorry I didn't tell you but my mind has been all over the place lately"!

"I was wondering what the heck that was" Lindsey said "I'm anxious to know what it is but I want to open this first; I've waited all this time to know what it is, a few more minutes won't hurt "!

So the ladies counted to three and then opened their letters together. Josie started smiling from ear to ear with joy while Lindsey's reaction was quite the opposite. Josie's expression changed as she looked up from her letter to find her friend in tears. Without uttering a word Lindsey handed her letter to her friend. Josie read aloud:

DEAR MS.JACOBS,

WE REGRET TO INFORM YOU THAT YOU WILL NOT BE GRADUATING WITH THE SPRING CLASS. YOU MISSED THE DEADLINE IN WHICH YOUR GRADUATION PETITION WAS TO BE SUBMITTED. THE DEADLINE WAS MARCH 20TH HOWEVER, THE DATE OF YOUR APPLICATION WAS MARCH 30TH. YOU MAY RESUBMIT YOUR PETITION IN ORDER TO PARTICIPATE IN THE SUMMER COMMENCEMENT CEREMONY. PLEASE NOTE, THE DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSION IS APRIL 15TH.

BEST,

UNIVERSITY GRADUATION COMMITTEE

Lindsey was sick. How could she make such a foolish mistake? Rushing! Her mother's words began to ring loud and clear in her ears. She was overcome with emotions. Lindsey and Josie cried and hugged. After her pity party she remembered the box. "Well, I bet I won't rush through anything else. I've learned my lesson". Lindsey picked up the box and examined it. She looked at Josie with a puzzled expression. Josie just shook her head and shrugged her shoulders. Lindsey nervously opened the package to find a beautiful mirrored glass plaque embedded in styrofoam. On the plaque were these words engraved with a hot pink tint and a pink heart:

PATIENCE IS A VIRTUE.

There was also a pink notcard in the box. On the note card she read these words, "I saw this and thought about you. Love Always, Mom".

Lindsey stared at the plaque for a moment, then went to her room and put it on her nightstand. She then grabbed her laptop and began filling out her application for the summer graduation.

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