Abeyance
1. A temporary state of inactivity, suspension, or disuse.
I have a longtime friend whom I haven’t seen in over two months. It’s sad for both of us, though the reason is necessary to another’s well-being. She’s taken on raising a granddaughter, a sixteen-year-old abandoned by her new-do-well dad.
Our friendship is on abeyance, another word for hiatus.
Abeyance comes from Old French and originally referred to a state of expectation. In medieval law, it described property or titles that temporarily lacked a rightful owner. Over time, the meaning broadened to include anything placed on hold. Today, abeyance is frequently used in legal, business, and governmental contexts. Unlike cancellation, abeyance implies that something may resume later. The word conveys temporary suspension rather than permanent termination.
We hope.
I told my friend, “This is your Magnus Opus,” a work. of worthy intentions – and great promise. True grit and hard work, a psychological tour de force.
I have another friend, one whom I also haven’t seen in months. She’s going through a divorce from a wealthy, shyster husband who, she’s recently learned, has been engaged in one affair after another throughout their marriage. I wish she weren’t distraught; he’s a waste of emotion. More likely, the source of her despair is her naivety, guilded by a sense of being used. She’s afraid that it’s all been wasted time…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=evxkY964tqk&list=RDevxkY964tqk&start_radio=1
At last – at the end of this post – the good news! I’m seeing both of them this weekend:
- With one of my treasured friends, we’ve resumed our weekly walk. (my knee replacement recovery interplayed with the two month hiatus)
- With the other, the go-to-new-school battles have settled into a sociable routine. MM and I get to do lunch once again… like we last did this summer. She was the first to bring a meal and a book to read after my surgery.
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