The Gamble

Patience: the least appreciated virtue

“Think it’s safe?” he asked.

She said, “I don’t know. Seems a bit risky to me.”

“Thought you were an expert at these things?”

“I am, but only when I know for sure it’s safe.”

“How will you know?” he asked.

“We’ll know all right. Probably when the others get wind of it. Good news travels in some mighty peculiar ways.”

“So, what do you want to do until then? I mean, it’s not as if we can spend our days just waiting, can we?”

“What?” she asked. “You have another appointment that’s pressing? More pressing than this?”

“Point taken. I just don’t think I can be that patient. I don’t know. I just want to get it over with, that’s all.”

“Remember, there are plenty of others to take your place. We just got here first.”

“True,” he said.

A car passed by; its tires went ba-dump ba-dump right in front of them.

“See what I mean?” the she-vulture said. “Now it’s dead. And now we can feast. Patience is a virtue.”