Hurry Up and Wait

I have heard the expression “hurry up and wait” over and over while working with the military for over 20 years and the same expression is true around the winery.  Wine takes time to mature, parts have long lead times and staffing and space utilization are always a challenge.

 

Just as in life, getting all of the pieces staged and in place is often a challenge and frustration. Our current dilemma is waiting for more corks, capsules, and bottles to be delivered. After that, we are good to go, except for that one little thing that was forgotten. Let’s face it, you don’t really have a project unless it requires three trips to Home Depot.

 

I used to get really stressed about all of these delays and detours and the thing that frustrated me the most was traffic lights. What a waste of time, especially when you feel rushed, hurried or are just impatient. All queued up and no place to go.

 

You are on a mission to get something done and bam a red light. So, what do we do? We get even more impatient, silently cursing the traffic light gods and the people who installed them and that silly car that wants to make a left-hand turn, or the slow pedestrian crossing the street.

 

But things have changed.

 

And changed in a very remarkable way.

 

And it was an easy change.

 

I was reading a book about being Zen and Mindful and they suggested that when you hit a red light, instead of getting worked up, do the opposite. Take a few deep breaths, relax, look around and take these few moments to get your head screwed back on straight. You might as well since you aren’t going anyplace anyway.

 

As silly as it sounds, it works.

 

Now as I approach a traffic light, something deep inside of me calls out “please turn red”.

 

Cheers,

 

 

P.S. We have been bottling a whole lot and have a bunch of great wines to offer you soon, but not quite yet. You have to wait, just like a traffic light. Breath and relax. Namaste