Touched by Natures Simple Beauty

We got dumped on last night. Three inches of snow now blanket everything as far as you can see. It is beautiful! The first true snow fall of the season. It's too bad that its beauty is about to be spoiled by dirty, noisy vehicular traffic.

Why are we so enamored of snowfalls beauty? The crisp, clean, pure white of it, the way it covers everything, especially the ugly things, certainly has to be some of the reasons. It cleans the air of pollutants and holds those particulates to earth's surface. But, even more than these things, to me, it represents a new beginning.

It is nature’s reset button. Returning every living thing to a fresh, equal and level starting point. Only the healthiest of nature’s beings can survive winters blast. Only these survivors will receive the blessing of a new beginning, relegating the past to but a mere memory, where it rightfully belongs.

The new future can be seen on the faces of the children. They always light up with such unbridled excitement upon their first view of nature's white blanket. Realistically, some of that excitement may be derived from the possibility of school cancellations, but the first thoughts are of building snowmen and snowball fights.

Adults on the other hand have a whole other set of issues that very quickly eat away at the 'excitement factor'. Shoveling the sidewalks and driveway to get to the car so it can be dug out. And then actually driving on this slippery stuff along side those people who foolishly believe their car is the 'one' that will never slide out of control and therefore think they can drive as fast as they want.

Before anyone else is out of bed, before the house wakes up with its usual noisy morning activity, I get to sit in front of the living room picture window, in my comfy soft recliner, selfishly admiring nature's simple beauty, with a cup of hot coffee and a piece of toasted wheat bread and apple butter thinking ain't life grand.