The forecast looks like it is going to stay white outside way for a while, and I LOVE IT!
I still race to the television (or my computer/phone since I don't currently own a television) to turn on the list of closings. My job is often listed on there, so it is almost exactly like being in the second grade again. If only I could knock on the neighbor's door and ask him to come build a fort with me, or an igloo, or have a snowball fight! I've only built a few snowmen in my day; I prefer igloos. They are more fun. We sure have made some extravagant ones, too!
I'm probably an oddball for still feeling excited about snow in my mid-twenties. Most of my friends detest the snow. ...and the sleet. ...and the horrible New England drivers. In their defense, many of us forget how to drive in bad weather until the very end of the season when it starts to warm up again. It's a vicious cycle, really. I, however, decided to never grow up (Peter Pan, are you listening?). Yes, incompetent drivers annoy me (and often try to kill me). Yes, I would much rather sleep in than shovel the driveway. No, I don't like it when a "wintery mix" follows a snowstorm leaving nothing but the formula for a great big sheet of ice to battle the next morning (I detested that even as a child). And yes, it truly does bother me that we are throwing massive amounts of salt and other chemicals on the roads, not only damaging the environment by adding toxins to and significantly altering the pH of our runoff, changing the flora capable of growing near our roadways, but also slowly eating away at our cars. If I wanted to, I could go on about how "coping" with snowstorms here in New England is harmful to our environment and our economy, but I am NOT a pessimist. That doesn't mean that I turn a blind eye to those problems (surely we can't think that salt and chemicals is forever the answer to nature's never-ending dustings?), but I don't get bogged down about it, either.
Snow is beautiful. Plain and simple. I swear, the cold wouldn't be worth it without the snow. There are entire sports that wouldn't exist without the snow! Some of my favorites, too - hockey, snowboarding, skiing, & ice skating! I'm sure that people who are involved, competitively or recreationally, in those sports get just as excited as I do when they wake up and see a sheet of white!
Still, as exciting as the sports are, nothing beats the still silence of the snow falling from the sky on a crisp winter morning. Close your eyes and picture it for a moment: The snow glistens in the morning light. Sounds seem distant, creating more space to hear your own thoughts, or lack thereof. Everyone in your neighborhood, or maybe even the whole state, wakes up and can't help but feel a tad more peaceful. The weather literally forces you to stop in your tracks and appreciate the stillness. Your morning beverage of choice, be it tea, hot cocoa, or coffee, somehow tastes a little better. The blanket of snow covering the earth muffles every sound, as if Mother Nature just knew that we all needed a little more peace than usual this morning. So, appreciate the still reminder, and the workout you will get shoveling yourself out this morning. You are gaining strength of body and peace of mind, all because it snowed!
Message of the day: You can't control the weather. Embrace it!
...Or move; just fly South, you snow-haters! God knows you can't change the weather! Cheers!
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