Deferred GratificationI've been thinking this week about deferred gratification. The idea and practice of waiting, or putting off, activities and outcomes that bring about happiness/satisfaction seems to be out of vogue in some corners of society today. More and more, though, I have come to appreciate its importance in a life well lived.
The reason deferred gratification is on my mind is because, just the other day, I resubmitted a revised version of an article to a journal that is considering publishing it. Here's how it has gone so far. About two years ago, I started doing the research for an article on the role of information technology in public commenting on federal agency regulations. (Boring stuff, I know...but if you happen to be interested, I can tell you more.) I presented an initial version of the findings in Chicago in the spring of 2005. (Surprisingly, IT doesn't make a difference, at least not in the context I am looking at.) Then I spoke about a more developed version at a meeting put on by the House Judiciary Committee (in the very room where Clinton was impeached). I revised the paper yet some more, then sent it out to a journal for possible publication. A couple of months later, the journal got back to me--love the piece, but you have to make some changes first. A couple of more months, and it is off my desk once again.
Here's my point. By the time this thing appears in print, it will have been several years since I first came up with the key finding. I will have forgotten many of the details! Obviously, I must really enjoy the process, because the celebration is still a ways off. Gratification deferred.
This kind of patience, for some reason (thanks be to God!), has been fairly easy for me to come by, not just at work but in my personal life as well. Desi and I dated for 8 years before getting married. (And we knew each other for 4 years before that!) Together, we have waited for a lot of things, both big and small (on the small end, we dreamed about going cross-country for more than a decade). Things that we really wanted to experience and have right now! Inevitably, the wait has been worth it...in spades! Now we look back and recognize that the sacrifices and deferrals have been worth it. But how do you convince the next generation of this, especially in America today?
For me, it is a constant balancing act. Enjoy the moment, yet act with the future in mind. The key, to come back to something I said a minute ago, is to love and cherish the process. Outcomes are great, no doubt. But we live the bulk of our lives in the process. Live these processes well. This is easier to do, I'm sure of it, when we live these processes not just for ourselves, but for others. Our family, our friends, our community, our world...our God...the One who made the greatest sacrifice of all.
posted by The Balla Family @ 3:32 PM
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