A New View…Appreciating Now

09 Feb A New View…Appreciating Now

White, sparkling, fluffy, intricate, hamster-size, beautiful and delicate are some words that describe snow. This season we had snow throughout and it can be viewed as nuisance or a beautiful aspect of nature. I find wonder in watching the snow fall to the ground. One day it can be cloudy and gray. The next day can be a new view of nature of snow, which is glittery and produces a technicolor view of nature.

In Wizard of Oz, when the movie begins it is black and white. As the movie progresses and Dorothy opens the door, it is an array of color on the other side. I always have anticipation when snow is in the forecast. When I go to bed, I ponder “Tomorrow, when I open the blinds will I see a different view than what I see today?” It sparks an excitement of the beauty to be seen when waking up in the morning. Even though it is not technicolor in true form, the snow shows a magical view of the wonder of weather.

My love for snow started when I would yearn for snow days. Living in the city, it was rare to get one snow day a year. In third grade, I remember our class coming back from lunch. Our teacher said, “Class, I am have some news for you. We are leaving early due to the snow.” The class was surprised since this hardly occurred. After we realized we were getting a snow day, the whole class cheered.

Six of us carpooled to school or rode the bus together. On this day, my friend’s day picked up our carpool group at the early dismissal. I still remember the gray and maroon van pulling up to the curb. We were all bouncing from excitement. When we arrived at their house, our friend’s dad said, “I am going to taking you sledding at the park all afternoon.” We piled back into the van and went sledding in a huge, black inner tube. Piled up, we zoomed down the hills at Carondelet Park. At the end of each run, we walked up the hill from the lake and kept repeating our sledding. I still recall the snow falling as we slid down the hill with joy and laughter on that wintery day.

This week, we had snow and our boys love snow just as much as I do. Where we live we have hills that offer lots of sledding choices. It’s an exictement to ponder…Which hill should we try? Which sled should we use? Should we pile up? Maybe we should race each other? As we were out in the snow, my mind was wondering about certain things and our son Drew could tell I was thinking about something else. Drew said, “All that matters is now.” Upon hearing that, I said, “You are right. All that matters is now.” We continued to play in the snow and appreciated the now.

May we find the beauty in things that cause us to appreciate the now. May we look for another view…a snowy day, a new day, a brighter view than before.