Lessons from Snowfall

It snowed today.

Okay, that isn’t great news.  However, I live two hours south of I-20 an 90 min north of I-10.  This section of the country doesn’t see snow very often.  As of this writing most of the snow has melted.

I spent over 18 years in the Rocky Mountains.  I pushed snow with the front bumper of my van during a blizzard on an interstate.  I’ve lived in Kansas and know what an ice storm is.

My jobs brought me to Mississippi, and that job ended with the housing crash.  So I’ve a new job that requires an hour commute north west of where I live.  My crew was talking about the snowfall and could they make it to work?  I told them they would not have any problems coming to work if it snowed.  The highway temperatures were warm enough that the snow wouldn’t stick. A bridge might be icy, but if you are cautious and pay attention that wouldn’t be a problem.

Well, the snow came.  I called and talked to one of my managers who told me the snow was “thick, and it sticked”.  However, the roads were all clear, just like I told them they would be.  They were amazed that I could predict the roads would be fine.  How could I do that?

I lived in snow country for 20 years, I’ve driven on it for more years than I care to remember, or admit to! I’ve learned about what the temperatures need to be for the white fluffly stuff to fall from the skies.  I’ve learned what ground conditions need to be for the snow to stick, and what makes for treacherous driving conditions.  (I never would drive during the first bad snowfall because everyone had forgotten how to drive during the summer and I didn’t want to be involved in someone else’s accident.)

So what is just a weather event to me, is a very big deal for some of my southern friends because they don’t 

see snow very often.

Like the weather, life is full of things that are old hat to some, and scary and trying times for others.  Experience is often a harsh teacher, but it is our experiences that color our perspectives and our attitudes.  It is how we react to the situations that determine our character.

The other point I wish to make is we can determine how we will react to our situations.  Or should I say how we will act in the situation.  “He made me angry, or she made me do it” do not hold much water with me.  No one makes you angry.  You choose to be angry.  Your choice on how you respond.  True, sometimes it is just plain easier to get angry and lash out.  However, is that an appropriate response? 

Life is too short to just react to things.   Live things, enjoy the moments for what they are.  Seldom do things go the way we want them to.  So enjoy things when they do go right, savor the happy moment when it presents itself.  Endure to the end of the moment when it isn’t exactly what you would like it to be.

So, like my southern friends, enjoy the snow, it is only hear for a moment.  Take life’s challenges in stride.  Learn, love, and laugh.  It makes life a little better.