This classic phrase brings back many memories and even fits some of today’s challenges. As a child, I can remember family road trips and being bored sitting in the back seat, mile after mile. I would ask, “Are we there yet?” My dad would always say, “Soon, be patient.” Perhaps an hour would pass, and I would ask it again, and usually get the same answer. Not one to be impatient, he put up with the constant questioning as he knew it was just a way to release some of the boredom. We usually pulled into the hotel, late at night, only to find it was bedtime. All that anticipation, only to find out that our fun wouldn’t start until tomorrow.
Fast forward a few years, when we took my kids on a road trip to the Mouse’s house, I remember them constantly asking, “Are we there yet?” I would smile and remember the patience my dad showed when I was the one asking the question, and like him, I would reply, “Soon, be patient.” Just as I remembered as a kid, we would finally arrive when it was late at night and time for bed. Like me, back then, the kids would be wound up with anticipation, expecting Disneyland but learning that we would not truly reach our destination until tomorrow.
It’s “kind of” the same with the coronavirus. We have a destination, a vaccine. Complaining about wearing masks and limited occupancy to slow down infections isn’t going to make anything happen faster. Refusing to follow guidelines would be like jumping out the car window on our road trips. We must be patient and do our part. Like our trips as a kid, we all want to arrive safe and secure. Vaccines are almost ready, but they won’t be available until they have gone through the miles of testing to be deemed safe and then the distribution can begin. For now, we must do our part to minimize the devastating infection rate, and to give scientists and healthcare professionals the time they need to complete this road trip.
Are we there yet? Soon, be patient.