Waiting patiently in expectation does not necessarily get easier as we become older. On the contrary, as we grow in age we are tempted to settle down in a routine way of living and say: « Well, I have seen it all. … There is nothing new under the sun. … I am just going to take it easy and take the days as they come. » But in this way our lives lose their creative tension. We no longer expect something really new to happen. We become cynical or self-satisfied or simply bored.

The challenge of aging is waiting with an ever-greater patience and an ever- stronger expectation. It is living with an eager hope. It is trusting that through Christ « we have been admitted into God’s favour … and look forward exultantly to God’s glory » (Romans 5:2).