God's Snowy Speedbump.

It's a beautiful snowy February Saturday morning in Michigan. A usual we have heard from the local meteorologists about the WINTER STORM WARNING and in their usual Chicken Little way, they have managed to take a seasonal painting of the landscape and turn it into a BREAKING NEWS EVENT. It's not, its just nature.

When I was a kid I remember being cooped up in the house during the coldest winter days. On snowy days you would get out to shovel or play in the snow. Neighbors caught up on each other's lives as they banded together to clear away the snow for the older couple down the street. Kids would be off with their shovels to make a few extra bucks. Snowballs would be thrown, snowmen made and knocked down, and Mom would make hot chocolate as we pealed off wet clothes. Being from a big family, our boots came from the hand-me-down box under the basement stairs. Coats, scarves and gloves were usually handed down to us younger kids. I remember wishing I was taller so I wouldn't have to wind that long scarf (that Mom crocheted) around my neck so many times so it wouldn't drag behind me. As I got older, the snow blower came along and I would be awakened on a snowy morning to the growing chorus of motors tossing the snow like fountains off of the sidewalk. Small cars that needed to be pushed out of snow drifts gave adolescent boys a chance to exhibit a feat of strength.

When I was a kid, this would probably seem like just a winter day. But looking back, I see these days are God's way of putting up a road block to get us to appreciate our surroundings. A momentary snapshot. An opportunity to enjoy and help others. In the spring we will be encouraged to stop and smell the roses. But today, since it's winter, let's enjoy the snow.