Bright morning!

It's such a bright morning this morning!!  Not that the sun is actually shining, but the snow is reflecting what light there is and making it look bright. (see photo below)  It's all of 25 degrees with a humidity of 88%.  According to Weather.com we are going to get some snow tonight and tomorrow.  If you click the link it will take you to my local forecast, if you want to change it you just type in your zip code in the search box at the top.

So, is everyone ready for the upcoming holidays?  I'm not.....yet.  I have a few things to finish and cookies to make......eeeeeee haaaaaaa.  But, I think I'm going to enjoy having the oven on today, it's not going to get very warm and the heat will be appreciated.

Last night I had a sort of epiphany.  I stepped outside and noticed something. There is nothing like the night of a big snow. It's so bright and clean looking. Every little glimmer of light shatters into a thousand glimmers of diamond dust on the surface of the snow. The silence is so full and complete that one tiny frozen particle of water echoes a thousand times over as it floats to the ground where it joins the millions and millions of tiny little flakes.

Silence is something that many of us don't appreciate. Without silence we would never learn to listen. Without silence we would never learn to look inward. Silence is not only golden, silence is necessary.  Without silence our minds cannot rest.  Without silence we become unpleasant.  When I say silence, I don't mean total quiet all the time, I just mean a brief period of time where there is no television or radio playing, no telephone conversations with friends (or enemies) and no faxes, text messages, couriers or deliveries.  I mean a few moments to actually take a breath and just slow down and notice the things around and within us.  I believe silence is necessary to find not only ourselves, but to find GOD as well. 

It's not as though I get much silence.  I have animals, 3 dogs and two cats, and friends, and children, and grandchildren and people at my house.  I enjoy listening to music almost all the time, although lately I haven't been doing that much.  But I also enjoy quietly sitting on my couch, sipping a cup of hot tea, and thinking about the days past and the days yet to come.  I enjoy the way silence wraps around me and muffles all the things that are so pressing and important.  I enjoy just being without having to be doing.  I not only enjoy it, it is a necessary part of my life.

So last night, as I stepped out onto my porch and looked at the glittering snow, I enjoyed one true moment of silence.  That moment, those precious few seconds, refreshed my soul and filled me with hope.

For once I'm thankful for a heavy winter snowfall that has left me stranded in the center of town.  I am thankful for silence.

Until later kiddies.  I'm going to go do what needs to be done and listen to what needs to be heard........and dream of another moment of true silence.