Winter

It snowed a lot in the past day here in Iowa. My friends Cadence and Olam and I went Christmas shopping this afternoon. We got to witness firsthand the beauty of the snow. The snow fell so beautifully straight down and covered the ground, making everything shockingly white. I was reminded again and again of how amazing the earth around us is. The simplest things can remind us of this day after day- a beautiful sunrise, a baby animal being born, a snowfall. The most beautiful things in our lives can't be made up; these things can only be witnessed and enjoyed.

My friend Olam hails from a less snowy part of the country and it was fun to be with him in the midst of the snow and exchange knowing looks with Cadence when we replied to his snow-joyfulness with "You haven't seen REAL winter yet, boo."

Snow, however, can also remind us of how fragile we are. The snow and ice make driving and sometimes even walking a challenge. There is nothing more humbling than realizing that we have so little control over the winter weather.

There was a guy in my church, Henry, who always used to remind people of this fact. "You pick the day, not the weather," he'd say. How true. We can plan and plan, but sometimes to no avail. Sometimes all we can do is put aside our plans and pick up a sled.

Soli Deo Gloria.
Amy