Waiting quotes
4.5K quotes on this topic — from poets, philosophers, and thinkers across history.
Explore further
Browse quotes that often appear alongside waiting — connected by shared ideas and recurring themes.
Quote collection
Follow a thought to its author, or read the full quote page.
"It was at this point that Bilbo stopped. Going on from there was the bravest thing he ever did. The tremendous things that happened afterward were as nothing compared to it. He fought the real battle in the tunnel alone, before he ever saw the vast danger that lay in wait."
"One day, I went to a soba restaurant outside town, and while I was waiting for the zarusoba I opened an old graph magazine. There was a picture of an exhausted, lonely kneeling woman who wore a checked patterned yukata after the tradegy of a large earthquake. With the intensity of my chest ready to burn up, I fell in love with that poor woman. I also felt a horrifying desire for her. Maybe tragedy and desire are back to back to one another."
"Until they come to see us from their planet, I wait patiently. I hear them saying: Don't call us, we'll call you."
"Though sleep is called our best friend, it is a friend who often keeps us waiting!"
"The problem with waiting for someone, whether that wait is an hour or a lifetime, is everyone's 'clock' is different. So what you might consider forever is only a little while to them, or vice versa."
"So I'll wait for you... And I'll burn Will I ever see your sweet return? Oh, will I ever learn? Oh, Lover, you should've come over Cause it's not too late."
"To do something that will just fly away is kind of special. Every time somebody tell you they love you, that "I love you" flies away, and you wait until the next one."
"The best way to deal with that is to live in a fully conscious, compassionate, loving way. Don't wait until you're on your deathbed to recognize that this is the only way to live."
"Serene I fold my hands and wait."
"Quiet people keep thier secrets to themselves. That's what makes them interesting...and usually worth the wait."
"You can't wait for the end of your problems for you to be present. It has to be done whereever you are - which is now"
"If he waits for the ideal moment, he will never set off; he requires a touch of madness to take the next step. The warrior uses that touch of madness. For - in both love and war - it is impossible to foresee everything."
"The way I see it, if you want the rainbow, you gotta put up with the rain. When I'm inspired, I get excited because I can't wait to see what I'll come up with next. Find out who you are and do it on purpose."
"Things will be far worse than they are now. And far better. I wait."
"Look at those hedge funds - you think they can wait? They don't know how to wait! I have sat for years at a time with $10 to $12 million in treasuries or municipals, just waiting, waiting...As Jesse Livermore said, 'The big money is not in the buying and selling...but in the waiting.'"
"I have spent my entire life working to make my community and my country better. And I can't wait to get inside the courtroom to tell my story."
"Waiting does not exist in the experience of those who recognize the presence of love wherever they are."
"Just sitting around waiting for my life to begin, while it was all just slipping away."
"The Work is merely four questions; it's not even a thing. It has no motive, no strings. It's nothing without your answers. These four questions will join any program you've got and enhance it. Any religion you have - they'll enhance it. If you have no religion, they will bring you joy. And they'll burn up anything that isn't true for you. They'll burn through to the reality that has always been waiting."
"Do not wait for the Last Judgment. It takes place every day."
