Be still and know. . .

Normally I am very bah humbug when it comes to snow. It used to be that I was nervous about driving in it, but I'm getting better about driving that now, slow and steady gets you home alive. But I really hate having to go out and do anything in it. It never snows on a Friday/Saturday when I don't have anything to do, which would be a nice treat. It always snows on a Sunday, or weekday, that I always have a tons of stuff to do. I'd like to be Sheri and stay at home and just watch it fall while my little doggy sits on my lap dosing, and me catching up on some much overdue reading. That idyllic situation, however, is not my existence. Instead I make sure that I double up on my socks, trudge through the snow, trying to keep myself vertical while I walk on the ice coated sidewalks, to make it into work 10 minutes late. I only live a couple of blocks away from the office that I work in, but I take my time in the snow, especially when it ices over as I have a hill in my town that I have to navigate.

I do have to say though, that I am grateful that we don't live in the Midwest, or New England, states. The ice storms and wind chills they face are not for the faint at heart. WA, and specifically the island I live on and Seattle, get a couple of inches of snow and everything shuts down. People go into a tailspin here. Rarely do we get multiple days of snow like we've received this week so inevitably there are always those that are not prepared for the ma lay that awaits them. Which kills me because it's not like they don't know that it's coming. Between you and me I get a chuckle out of watching the cars on Queen Ann hill slip and slide as they try to scale the obstacle. That might sound mean but we are given a lot of notice prior to these storms coming in so I don't exactly feel sorry for the people that our news anchors choose to interview about their lack of preparedness. However, I do think that the city of Seattle also has an obligation to make that particular incline as salted and sanded as possible to avoid the debacles that take place on that road. For my readers that live in the Bay Area, imagine what would happen if Knob Hill or California and Lombard St. were to suddenly get snow dumped on it and then have it frozen over. Now that would be a catastrophe. (I wasn't able to find a pic of what I was talking about but use your imaginations).

That rant being over with, I have to admit that the snow does offer up a feeling of stillness that is otherwise not felt throughout the bulk of the year. It is a time that people use to stay home from work, depending on the treachery of the roads they are on, and be still. Psalm 46:10 says, "Be still and know that I am God." I don't know how a person cannot notice the beauty and purity that the first snow fall offers and not appreciate the quietness that it offers. Like a peaceful dream. The first snow that I got to experience, here on the island, I was house sitting for my pastor, who was in South America. I was in the Navy and I remember the complete calm that enveloped the piece of land that I was on. The sea of white that lay before my eyes was untouched, it's lines, shared with the ground it covered, were soft, like a cloud passing in the sky. Calm and peacefulness were not adjectives that I would use to describe that particular point in my life, Navy life is, at it's best, controlled chaos, so it resonated very deeply within my soul that this was something to take in and appreciate; and I did. That day the base was closed and I had nowhere to go and nothing to do, and I got to blithely stare out the window, sip on hot chocolate and meditate on this verse. If I had one day to live over and over again that would be the one. That night that it snowed, the snow became a noise and it was the most peaceful sleep that I've ever had!!! (I don't sleep well to begin with so that is saying a lot)

The snow also offers up the hope of childs play. There is nothing so fun as picking a snowball fight with your friends. I didn't grow up with snow in my backyard, but I'm all for instigating a good snowball fight. Game On!

Here are some pics that I took today of our winter wonderland. I hope that you enjoy them and take some time to be still yourself and enjoy the Christmas holiday. Whether you have snow or not.

Frozen Berries

Snowy Lights

A View From My Porch

Can you say Duh! My snowy town

Guess where I took this one?!