Snow day

Today I woke up to a winter white landscape.  The trees were blanketed, the air was crisp, and the new fallen snow was sparkling and untouched.  Everything was beautiful...for about a  minute.  Then a truck came by with a loud horn, you could hear the splashing of car tires, there was a siren, a dog barked...serenity was broken.  In 2 seconds it went from awe inspiring to awful because  Darn, I still have to go to work and, Crud! I have to go scrape my car!  I hate snow!! I complained as I turned away from the window.  My, how quickly things change.

We think that way about a lot of things.  You know the question "If a tree falls in the forest and no one is there to hear it does it make a sound?"  Basically, does my presence /opinion  (or anyone else's) validate anything? The answer is no!  If the tree falls it makes a noise.  I don't have to be there and neither do you.  When it hits the ground there will be a crack and a thud with or without a witness. So, snow is lovely whether we get to enjoy it with our children or have to shovel it and drive to work. By the same token, and this is where things can get hard, our attempts to love and create something beautiful and lasting aren't fruitless (and don't  make us foolish for trying) if they are not returned in the way we had hoped.  Our experience does not necessarily create a new reality for the gift that was given.

Here's the thing:    Whatever it is  - whoever it is that has made you smile or left you with a sense of comfort and peace- even for a moment - their essence is still there no matter how icy, cold and  difficult your road may become.  Time and trials can diminish the divine and warp the wonderful.  Remember, no matter what happens,  that even though things change,  you knew them "when..."  Sometimes even with our greatest hopes and efforts, our lives just can't stay the same and how we react to that truth is an impression of our character and determines our destiny.

Each dirty, frozen, mound of snow heaped on the side of the road days from now is made up of millions of individual flakes, one-of-a-kind and perfect that served their purpose and now await the next step in time.  That realization can be a source of reflection and hope.