Punctuality

Happy Passover Day, everyone!
Today is Good Friday, so my church is conducting a special service to commemorate it.
And as usual, the youth community of my satellite church decide to go the the central church together.
And as usual, I was the first of them to arrive.
The service started at 10, and I'm there already at 8.30.
What pisses me off is that my friends were extremely late (a few minutes AFTER the service started)
So we cannot sit at our "usual place".

My mother taught me since I was little to NEVER be late for anything.
Be it school, be it church, be it going to birthday parties.
And I am thankful for that, because it made me discipline in many other areas as well.

But don't you think, the world demands punctuality?

That made me think.

Why does punctual people always get into these troubles?

Why Indonesian people appreciate late people so much?

Another example:

Usually at big services like that, youth and teenagers are politely asked to sit on the carpets provided in the front, to give place for "elders".

Well, I don't mind doing that.

But that makes me think:

Are we giving our places to "elders", or "people who comes late because they know that youths will be forced to give up their seats for them" ?

Sometimes, the capacity of the church is just not enough.

But sometimes, there are people who misuse that to be late.

It makes me wonder?

What's the right thing to do?

Why people looks down on their most precious resource: Time?