Although I hate snow when I have to drive in it, or when people I care about have to drive in it, when it comes in the quantity that we are still receiving and brings the world to a virtual halt, I can relax and enjoy it like a child.
So with none of my family forced to drive in it today, work called off or covered by someone else, or a professional driver to get someone from point A to point B and back, I've sat at the window and watched it snow most of the morning. Then I did what I'm prone to do, and what most people undoubtedly find a bit crazy, I bundled up, got my camera and went for a walk.
Face it, this amount of snow hasn't fallen here in 10 years. It's magical and transforms the world. Tomorrow I may be back to driving in it again, or the roads may be scraped enough that little people come here (either way there may be a sled involved), but here on my dead end road, there has been little traffic beyond one farmer and the dogs. It's as quiet and peaceful as today's busy world ever manages to be and to spend it inside is, to me, a waste.
My husband, out of work for the day, braved the elements with me. My house dogs, after a quick trip out and one bound through the snow (above) ran for the porch. My yard dogs are always game, no matter the elements so we were off.
When we headed down the road there was one set of recent tracks -- tobacco farmers planted seeds at their nearby greenhouse on Tuesday and had been in to check the temperature -- and one of the dogs quickly left his big-pawed mark on the trail.
My neighbor's steep driveway had not been broached by anything but dog tracks and looked tranquil and scenic.
Near the point where we turned around, the three black dogs were lured away by a scent in the nearby woods, although my red Lab Rebel stayed with us.
It wasn't too long before the source of the scent bounded across the road in front of us and disappeared again into the woods, far ahead of her pursuers, who turned back toward us once they reached the road.
On the way back, the snowfall was increasing again, and I noticed what I think is the same tractor (although in a different spot) that I photographed the last time it snowed.
Back inside, I watched the snow fall on our summertime hangout, the weeping cherry, swings and sandbox where we love to spend our evenings.
Then I sat at my computer, watching the birds flock to the feeder as the snow continued to fall and our totals continue to rise. It's a day to be at peace with the world and realize just how far out of my control everything, from life and death to the weather, actually is. I didn't want snow, just as I didn't want much of what has happened in the last couple of months, and yet it came.
So I'm going to keep looking for the moments to treasure and not let the snow, or my life, slip by unappreciated just because it isn't what I wanted. I'll huddle inside with one I love for a while, then I'll push out again to feel the magic of life wet against my face and wonder, is it the snow or my cold tears?
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