The Art of Waiting

Yesterday I sat in the Writing Center with my consultant and another as we all waited on our appointments to come in.  While we waited, we had pleasant conversation, much of which had to do with upcoming class assignments.  When my consultant's appointment didn't show up after fifteen minutes, she let me know that it was officially a no-show.  She apologized that I hadn't been able to observe more actual consultations, but she said that I am experiencing a decent chunk of what it's like to be a writing consultatant--there will always be no-shows.  "There is a lot of waiting involved in the Writing Center," she told me.  I guess I had never thought about all the times that I might actually go expecting to consult with someone, only to be left waiting for a student who never shows up.  While it definitely isn't something that I need experience in, I'm glad that my consultant and I had that conversation because it reminded me of the total experience of a writing consultant.