Before the Storm

We are expecting another big snowstorm (actually two in close succession) here in Minnesota during the coming week.

Before the Storm

everything looked calm. Each day a bit of snow melted, the ice on the edges of neighborhood streets receded a bit more and I dreamed of spring.

This morning when I woke up I could not see any snow falling, but within 15 minutes snow was coming down in big flakes like a winter fairy tale. The evergreen tree outside our bedroom window was covered with a thin layer of snow. Fortunately today is only a prelude to the snow that we expect during the week.

The walking paths are still ice-covered in my neighborhood and though the above freezing temperatures have led to some snow melt, I cannot wait until it is all gone and the grass begins to turn green. Sadly my hopes of an early spring are fading a bit with each new snowstorm prediction.

We’re expecting about 18 inches of snow over the course of this week. Now, in this moment, I can’t even imagine what that will look like. We did our grocery shopping for the week yesterday and I moved my weekly Pilates class from Thursday to today.

So after today I imagine I will be home for several days, possibly walking outdoors in the new snow and helping scoop snow (though Jon will use the snow blower on the heaviest snow).

What meaning do I make of this?

Part of me is telling myself, “Whining not allowed!” But another part says, why not whine if that’s what I feel like doing. The advice of meditation teachers, “Let yourself feel what you feel and then let it go,” seems to be good advice for the coming week.

Snow was falling,
so much like stars
filling the dark trees
that one could easily imagine
its reason for being was nothing more
than prettiness.
― Mary Oliver

Can I look at this snow as a gift and wonder? What beauty will I see? How will I spend this precious time at home without interruption? If I let go of my thinking mind and simply observe, what will I see, what will I feel?

At this moment I realize that if I let go of what I think that I want and simply allow what is, I find peace, joy, and even gratitude for each moment. And when I think more deeply and widely I realize that the parched ground gives thanks for the moisture of this storm. Letting go of my petty human concerns and embracing all of life gives me a different perspective.

Look at everything always as though you were seeing it either for the first or last time: Thus is your time on earth filled with glory.”
― Betty Smith, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

I have a warm home, plenty to eat, a loving spouse, everything I need in this moment and the next. Today and through this week I plan to hold onto the grace of each moment, the gratitude I feel for this life, and the joy of being present and connected to all of life.

I think us here to wonder, myself. To wonder. To ask. And that in wondering bout the big things and asking bout the big things, you learn about the little ones, almost by accident. But you never know nothing more about the big things than you start out with. The more I wonder, the more I love.”
― Alice Walker, The Color Purple

Wishing you a wonderful and wonder-filled week.

May you walk in beauty.