In life we sometimes get a little ahead of ourselves in building new relationships. Perhaps our nerves kick in or we simply need to see how we are perceived from those who are observing us. I witnessed two young people meeting for the first time as they began getting to know one another. One of these two began offering courtship gestures perhaps a little premature of when they could be better received.
Do you remember the Heinz catsup television commercial where the two kids were waiting for the catsup to come out of the bottle? The music playing in the background was, “Anticipation is making me wait…” I believe there is a good lesson to be learned from this thought process.
In building new relationships, there may be times we may push too hard, or leave little to be discovered. Think of times in your life you were waiting, waiting, and waiting for something you desired. When what you waited for finally came, you may have felt it was the “best” you had ever experienced, or “better” than you thought it would be.
As a Scout I remember how wonderful tin foil dinners tasted while eating them on campouts. We may have been starving to death who knows, but we would build a roaring fire, getting it to the point where we had red hot coals. Then we would place our dinners strategically in the center of the heat, watching and listening to them cook.
When we finally heard the bubbling noises slow, those coming from the cooking potatoes, meat, carrots, and onions; we knew our dinners were ready to eat. With tongs we retrieved our foil pouches, quickly breaking them open, and then eating them satisfying our pending hunger. Oh those memories are vivid of how great those dinners tasted. I swear we ate them in all but a few bites.
Wanting to duplicate my childhood experiences, one day I made a tin foil dinner at home. Funny thing, at home with all the modern conveniences to cook with they tasted horrible. What did I do wrong I thought? They were made with all the right ingredients, foil turned the right way, hot fire, and then cooked to perfection. Yet they didn’t taste anything like those I had eaten as a scout.
What I discovered is things taste (are) better when we are anxious (have waited) to partake in whatever it is we are doing. If we can learn this simple lesson, think how much greater we will be in providing something to be desired.
The young man in our story began to make moves too early, using physical touches typically reserved for longer term relationships. These arguably are quite innocent in character, but the underlying apprehension created, once the communication is sent out, is hard to overcome.
Using the catsup example; think of a young couple enjoying each other enough to want to hold hands. Each of them waiting for assurance that they are both ready. Now there is built up “anticipation” to this simple yet profound first acknowledgement of common interest. Waiting builds for this first interaction to be something special, sending goose bumps throughout each person’s body.
One the other hand if the timing is too early. One may feel it is an intrusion of personal space. They will have missed feeling good about the touch, and may develop fear toward anything further. The potential for continued growth in the relationship will be set back, or possibly forfeited.
In life timing is everything. We should be aware of how important building anticipation is, whether for personal or business needs. We should observe others reactions, access their desires, wait for confirmation, and then hit when our service will be best received. While our simple meal may only be a tin foil dinner, it will be something desired at the appropriate time.
Jaren
