I think one way I’ve grown this year is that I’ve become more comfortable with unfinished things.
That may not sound like growth. It certainly doesn’t feel heroic. It doesn’t come with a soundtrack or a slow-motion victory lap. Nobody puts “learned to tolerate uncertainty” on a plaque. But it is growth.
I have always wanted things to make sense sooner than they usually do. I want the story finished. I want the answer clear. I want the project completed, the problem solved, the path obvious and the loose ends tied into a neat little bow.
Life, of course, rarely cooperates.
This year has reminded me that unfinished does not mean failed. A book that hasn’t found its full path yet is not a failed book. A prayer that hasn’t been answered yet is not an ignored prayer. A relationship that still needs work is not a hopeless relationship. A dream that is taking longer than expected is not necessarily a dream God has abandoned.
Sometimes unfinished just means unfinished. I’m trying to learn the difference.
That doesn’t mean I always like the waiting. I don’t. I still get impatient. I still get discouraged. I still want some things to move faster than they do. But I think I’m growing in the ability to sit with the tension a little longer without immediately declaring the whole thing a disaster.
Maybe that is what growth looks like at this stage of life. Not becoming a completely different person. Not suddenly mastering patience, wisdom, faith and emotional maturity before breakfast.
Just learning, little by little, that the middle of the story still matters.
Even when I can’t see the ending yet.
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Copyright © 2026 Doug DeBolt.
