I recently read a sticker which was posted on the back of a car that really made me laugh. It read, "On time is when I get there!". After a few laughs and perhaps a few concerned looks from passers-by who saw me laughing out of the blue, I must say that the words on this sticker also produced some thought. I asked my self, is this really true? And then I surmised that if you are what we call in Bajan terms "a big up", then it might somehow apply to you. If, however, you are what some Bajans deem "a small fry", then you had better not let those words settle anywhere in your psyche.

Nevertheless, I must admit that I needed to see that slogan on that particular day. It was rush, rush, rush for me that morning and somehow I allowed myself to let every little mishap on the road annoy me as I battled moderate to heavy traffic. I thought, ‘why oh why couldn't I have left 15 minutes earlier and why oh why am I now stuck in traffic?’ Then I saw that sticker and a load lifted. Immediately, I breathed another prayer, as is my custom on mornings and someone I felt an inner peace. The message to me was not that I could be tardy whenever I wanted to be. Oh no! The thought that went through my head, is that if I happen to be a little late at some point in time, I will not made a big deal out of it and raise my blood pressure, which does nothing to help the situation. Rather, I will make the best of the moment, and determine to do better the next day and the day following that.

I think we all need to live like this, otherwise, we somehow would suffer a stroke or some other malady, that can be prevented. The reality is, for those of us who have to traverse to and fro to make our living, we cannot always be on time. Something will crop up, from time to time. However, we can determine to be "usually on time" and release our selves of the guilt we feel when we slip up, or when something happens or when are just too tired to rush. However, having said that, I have had my share of assignments when I have turned up quite early and I have had to wait sometimes forty-five minutes to an hour for a session to start, because someone adhered to the slogan "on time is when I get there", and somehow they got away with it. I don't want to return to the debate about those who are seemingly big or small, but I want to say that it really is not fair and neither is it professional, to keep people waiting an excessive amount of time for you to show, up unless you have a really good excuse. That said, it is not always easy to be on time each and every time, but I must admit that if you have something to read, or something to think through, it really can take the boredom out of sitting and waiting for an event to start. You see, you do not waste that time, but you remain calm and productive, which makes for a relaxing day. I have found my self slipping after getting fed up with waiting, but I have determined to get back on track.