Watching the World Go By

My walk from the office to where I usually park takes me past a park bench.

Just a few times I've seen people sitting there, but most of the time it's an empty bench.  That's not surprising, since it's not very far from where the bench is located to the main entrance of one of the larger buildings on campus.

In any case, two men were seated there in the shade of an Oak in the late afternoon of a perfect summer day.

Looking at them made me think they were most likely a father and son enjoying the afternoon.  They sat quietly, as men are apt to do, and I wished them a good afternoon saying it was a perfect day to be sitting on a bench.

"Yes, it is.  We're just watching the world go by."

I wished them well and continued to my car thinking about what I needed to do on the way home, and what was waiting for me once I got there.

But as I walked, I kept thinking about what they said, "we're watching the world go by."

Sometimes, maybe even many times, we don't want to be on the bench we want to be in the game.

When it came to actual games during my time playing during middle school, I waited patiently on the bench for my name or number to be called.

Later, when I was in high school and playing on our church's CYO (Catholic Youth Organization) team, I didn't want to sit on the bench - I wanted to play.  By the way, it was a Lutheran church, but we were able to participate as a team against teams organized by the many Catholic churches in Janesville.

Now, there is a right time to be "in the game," and good times to sit on the bench and watch the world go by.

If we are constantly in motion trying to make a play - we miss the opportunity to observe, learn, and grow through the experiences of those around us.

It's a long weekend for most of us - it might be a perfect time to find a bench in a park, in the mall, downtown to sit and watch the world go by.

I suggest you take some notes.