Always Late

Do you know of people who are ALWAYS late. And I mean ALWAYS!! Well, I do know a few.

When I was in school, there was one in our group who was always late , no matter what. And there were always excuses. She would be at least 30 minutes late every time we met. Sometimes as late as an hour. And boy! we hated waiting for her. But we still included her in all our activities coz she was a good friend. After many years of waiting, our group decided to tell her an earlier timing for one of our gatherings. We told her a time which was a half hour earlier than the appointed time for the rest of us. Guess what? She was on time that ONE day, and she was fuming mad that she had to wait a half hour for us!

What makes a person consistently late?

Poor planning? Well, when you dont plan ahead of time what you need and how long you will take, naturally you will be late. You cant be blaming the bus all the time. You have to wait for it. You cant expect it to be there waiting for you as you arrive at the bus-stop! (Unless you live in a country with very accurate bus schedules!)

A superior-than-thou attitude? Why should I waste MY time waiting for the rest? They can wait for me. I know a few who are like that. They know they are supposed to meet you at 6.30. But they leave their home at 6.00 to go to the shops to pick up something before meeting you, knowing that there is travelling time involved between the places, and queues and parking woes to contend with, etc, but they dont care. You can wait. And they dont even apologise when they arrive late! This type I really cant stand!! It simply shows their lack of consideration for others!

I am the hardly late sort. I will always factor into my travelling time traffic jams, which may not even be existent and an extra few minutes for any other contingencies. As a result, I am the sort that is usually at least 10 minutes early for appointments. And I can be quite anal about punctuality with my children.

My son and youngest is a bit like me. Always likes to be early. My oldest, on the other hand, doesnt. And it irks me! Everyone is always waiting for her. Whether its to school, from school, or going out anywhere. You tell her we have to leave at 10, and she is just changing at 10. I am the sort that when I say 10, I expect you to be all dressed and ready to jump into the car at that time, or at least be waiting for me at that time. But nothing I do seem to be able to make her change her attitude about being punctual!

Are you the punctual sort? I am sure you will be after reading this story. Enjoy.

A Priest was being honored at his retirement dinner after 35 years in the parish. A leading local politician and member of the congregation was chosen to make the presentation and to give a little speech at the dinner.

However, he was delayed, so the Priest decided to say his own few words while they waited:

"I got my first impression of the parish from the first confession I heard here. I thought I had been assigned to a terrible place. The very first person who entered my confessional told me he had stolen a television set and, when questioned by the police, was able to lie his way out of it. He had stolen money from his parents, embezzled from his employer, had an affair with his boss's wife, and taken illegal drugs. I was appalled. But, as the days went on, I learned that my people were not all like that and I had, indeed, come to a fine parish full of good and loving people."

Just as the Priest finished his talk, the politician arrived full of apologies at being late. He immediately began to make the presentation and gave his talk:

"I'll never forget the first day our parish Priest arrived," said the politician. "In fact, I had the honor of being the first person to go to him for confession."


So are you going to be late from now on?