Patience has never been one of my virtues. In the parable Jesus shares in today’s Gospel, this virtue seems to be lacking in the fig tree owner as well.

When our children were still young, a typical Sunday would include attending the early morning Mass, followed by working the Scout Pancake Breakfast and then heading home to change clothes and running off to the ball fields for an afternoon of kids’ tournament games. In the evening, we would host a team pool party before cleaning-up and guiding the kids to bed. Like most parents, we navigated an overabundance of activities during these busy years. We helped our children balance church and school along with vacations camps, and managing the accompanying growing pains all kids encounter. I often felt as though we were just checking off the “to do” boxes in an attempt to keep up with the Joneses.

Fortunately, I also saw the deliberateness my wife was practicing during these busy times. Not only was she skillfully managing our everyday life, but she was also making sure our choices reflected the beliefs and values we cherish. Like the gardener, she cultivated the fertile ground to allow our kids to grow. Likewise, she has instilled in me the confidence that they would bear good fruit in their time.

Now our son is a senior in college and daughter is a first-year student. As proud parents, we have enjoyed watching them grow. Of course, I’m anxious to see them take their place in the world, carve out their own financial independence, and share their gifts with others. But I trust that, like the fig tree, they have been well cultivated and cared for and will bear fruit in due time.