Punctuality is something you have to deal with. People need you to be present at certain times of the day and if you’re not there on time or don’t give people a heads up, people will lose a little bit of trust in you. However, people shouldn’t be too quick to judge someone’s tardiness. Things happen, life is unpredictable, and yes, people will be late.

(Mark Woodbury / Flickr)

Schools are the first place they will give you this talk. If you were late, you would have to get a late slip most of the time and it would be shameful to enter. It does feel a bit weird to tell a kid to control something they can’t control. Most of the time, kids’ parents are the ones dropping them off. There are parents out there who just don’t care about if their kids are going to be late or not. Kids can be ready an hour before school is supposed to start but if the parents are being lazy and just drop off their kids whenever then it’s pointless telling them to come in on time if it’s out of their control. If there is someone teachers should be having this conversation with, it’s the parents. Parents know that kids should show up on time so the fact that they’re not taking that responsibility isn’t helpful.

(zaphad1 / Flickr)

I was late quite a bit during the early days of elementary school. To be honest, I don’t know why. For some reason, my dad would never make me go to the office and get a late slip. He would just make me go to the classroom, which eventually led me into going to the office and telling them I was late for attendance reasons.

High school is weird when it comes to telling kids about being late. You only get a few minutes to get from one class to another and depending on the size of the school, you would have to run just to make it to your next class. However, teachers will do the thing where they go “The bell doesn’t dismiss you, I do.” This was the worst thing to experience especially if you have something important for the next class that needs you to be there. There was a class that didn’t let people go until after you cleaned up, which would eventually lead up to you being late for the next class. The teacher would still ignore your reasonings and just tell you that you should’ve been on time.

Then there is being late to a party. People will have a time set for what time to show up since it’s the time they can guarantee to be ready. I’ve never shown up early to a party before. I don’t like being too early just in case I’m the first one there. Small talk can be a little awkward, especially if the person that’s hosting is someone you don’t talk to regularly.

Some families are known to just never show up on time. I can confirm as someone in a Filipino household that we are never on time for a party. We were always an hour late to every party we were invited to. Honestly, no one cares if you’re on time for a party or not. As long as you show up, they’re more than okay with it. Being late can be quite embarrassing for someone who had to go to church every Sunday. Considering that church is a quiet place you’re going to attract some attention. Normally, you would hang in the back and just find a spot while everyone is standing and speaking, or you would just go completely unnoticed. The way to go somewhat unnoticed is to never walk in the center while mass is being held. Instead, you would go from the other side of the pew if it’s towards the center. However, some people are still pretty loud when they’re late, talking among themselves about which spot they’re taking.

(Dennis Jarvis / Flickr)

Sometimes, you’re locked out if you’re late. This can apply anywhere like school or any other event. One time in my science class, a few people showed up late and my teacher didn’t allow them to go inside until after he talked with them. As far as I can remember, only one person got out of the talk early since she had a real excuse. For the others, they were just told the same old things that every teacher says, saying they should’ve known better. Sometimes, you’re just never getting in. My brother once had a seminar that enforced this. Once the seminar started, you were just never getting in. He arrived at his destination late and he couldn’t get in. It was a work-related event and he had to make up for it later than usual.

At the very least, it’s time to change up the attitude around this. Teachers might be disappointed that kids show up late but at least they did. The statement, “I can’t believe you’re late.” is super discouraging. Instead, teachers should say, “I’m glad you’re here.” It shows that the kids’ efforts to make it to school were still good despite any obstacles. Sometimes, kids are going through things that cause them to show up late. Imagine if they woke up to the worst thing in the world and they show up late as a result. Then when they arrive, the teacher just makes it worse by putting them down even more while disregarding what the child is going through. Sure, they might be on time for the rest of their lives but these aren’t the conditions that they should’ve been under.

Being late is something that will happen to you every once in a while. If you ever have kids, you might even be affected even more since life can be chaotic and unpredictable. You can either berate people for their tardiness, or you can be nice about it and thank them for still showing up.