The waiting game by Sue Robin

After looking at various iterations of “The waiting game,” I came upon the image I ultimately chose to use. Patience, I realized, is what I am most in need of as I “play” these national and global waiting games. One day, one night, one hour, at a time. I am ready for these “games” to be over and for the good guys to win.

Armed Trump supporters at Florida polling site were off-duty guards and had not been hired, officials say—WaPo

Coronavirus Threatens To Define Final Days Of Election As U.S. Cases Skyrocket—Forbes

Trump: I hope that the Supreme Court ends Obamacare—WaPo

October 22, 2020

The waiting game by
Sue Robin, Los Angeles, California

The dental insurance company has thus far kept me waiting one full month to approve five extractions and gum surgery, thus making an unpleasant event even worse. The anticipatory anxiety about having one’s lower front teeth removed is enormous. Vanity and pain are not a good combination. Do they really think someone would request this if they did not need it?

My sister wasn’t feeling well, with tiredness, fever and achiness, so we waited for a COVID19 test. It seemed to take forever, but it was negative, and she has already shaken the miserable little bug she had. Thank God.

Waited, too, for my sister-in-law and niece, who had COVID19, to recover. Thankfully, they recuperated quickly.

Waiting for some rain, or a bit of wind, to mitigate the smoke that has meandered down our way yet again. Since I live in Los Angeles, it is likely going to be a long wait.

Waiting for Trump to have a WikiLeak drop as in 2016, though I think Rudy’s first big reveal fell flat. Everyone knows that Trump is not running against either Hillary or Hunter, and the back-story of where the info was obtained is as preposterous as our current President.

Waiting for Republicans to condemn the horrors Trump has manifested in these past four years. A few have from the beginning, some joined the chorus midway, but now that things are not looking very positive for Trump many others are doing like Trump does:  I don’t know him. I never liked him. I don’t agree with him.

Waiting for November 3, an election like no other I have witnessed in all my years of voting. The polls are trending in a positive direction for Biden. I like that, but the like is tinged with worry. The polls thought Hillary would win in 2016 and we see where that got us.

With even more trepidation than I feel for the dental work, I am waiting for the post-election drama, which I fear will bring more trauma. What shenanigans will Trump and his cohorts attempt? What will Trump encourage from his white supremacist buddies? The not knowing is troublesome and, at moments, nauseating.

Maybe Biden will win big enough on the 3^rd to forestall any acting out, but this man who is still calling for Hillary to be locked up and to see her emails and is better than anyone I know at holding a grudge, is unlikely to go gently into the good night. I have read that it is the Secret Service who would be obligated to escort Trump from the White House if he refuses the results of a duly certified election. Considering how many times he unnecessarily endangered their lives, we might hope this would be a job they will gladly do.

We all have personal things we are waiting for during this strange time. Some people are waiting to hold a wedding or a funeral. Some to go back to work or school, some to leave the house. I am waiting for an insurance company and a time when I might safely visit my son and family once again.

As a community and, I dare say, as a world, we are all waiting for a vaccine, for social justice, for a new president and, most importantly, a return to civility, kindness and respect.