Softly and quietly light snow flakes float down onto the outside surfaces of my home. Earlier the flakes had come down faster and heavier. The trees outside in the back are outlined in white and create a beautiful feast for my eyes. I actually enjoy the brightness because of my deep dislike for grayness and darkness Yet, with all the enjoyment visually I grimace at this weather type because of the cold I do not like, because of the slippery and sloppy roads. I need to go out and I am delaying because I do not enjoy driving in this. My grandson who does not drive must get to his job on a moped. This makes me feel concerned for his safety yet he needs to go.
I sometimes think that it is simply Winter that I dislike. Again, I hate dark days, gloominess and cold. I know one of my brothers detests cold. (There is a reason but that is another story.). I detest the shorter days and the feeling of being trapped. I hate wearing boots and coats. And so I whine on about the weather.
My words to others echo back to me, " if you can't change it then move on and change what you can."
Can I change the weather? Some people think they can impact the weather but my belief is that God controls the weather and we can't do much about it at all. We can manage how we treat the earth but ultimately God who created the sky, the seas, the plant and animal life and me is in control of the weather.
So as I was gazing on this beautiful soft stuff that I find so uncomfortable I had a question pop into my head. What GOOD is snow? Are there things about this strange cold beautiful type of earthly matter that are good? God has all things planned out. Why would He plan snow?
There IS the obvious : Kids ( of all ages) like to play in it. Skating, sledding, skiing and building snow forts and snow people come to mind immediately. This isn't the answer that I was looking for.
But I did a little research ( by asking Siri) and found there really are good benefits to snow. If you grow wheat snow helps keep your soil in good condition by helping to maintain the moisture in the ground as well as protecting soil from wind erosion. This must be a benefit to farmers of all crops in Northern areas. Another good thing about snow is that it insulates plants from the cold air and wind. I could do a whole dissertation on the scientific benefits of snow but since this is not a science lesson
I'll just do a summary. Snow is a huge benefit to our earth. We need it!
Did you ever use the phrase, " I don't NEED this? " There are many little so called irritants and things that come into our lives that we think are a real pain in the neck. But ARE these gripes for no
reason?
I wonder if some of the little problems are there for our insulation or to build us up and prevent erosion. Did you ever notice how a piece of wood that is rubbed often becomes beautiful as it is rubbed again and again. Like snow adds moisture to soil does life's "bothers" add strength to our souls. I think of the scrpture that says, " Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good solider of Jesus Christ." 2 Timothy 2:3. I must endure some hard things in life. I must soldier on. When it snows I face it with my coat, hat, boots, scarf and gloves. When life snows I put on my soldier gear and march on to the beat of Gods drum that keeps a perfect rhythm. And I will be made strong as the snow enriches and protects the earth.
Now who would have thought that that beautiful white snow had so much written in it?
