It seems like it has snowed all night long, and most of my city sits snowed in at around -21.
Now, usually in my northern Canada town this isn’t a big deal – but it’s the first major snow of the season, and these kinds of conditions do something special: they slow you down.
I’m a speed freak – I get everything done as fast as possible… I’m known for speeding in the car, for typing at extreme velocity (thanks to type-attack and my father, but that’s a different story), and eating everything on my plate before my taste buds have a chance to check in. I’m in a hurry. I don’t think my life differs from anyone else’s at the pace we try to keep… success is, of course, more things done and a work ethic on speed is of course a godly pursuit… or is it?
Snow days seem like a gift somehow – although I curse them inwardly (and outwardly if I’m trying to dig out my car or catch a flight). But slowing down is a missing skill of this generation. Even our attempts at slowing down are really about going in a different direction (more movies, eating, celebrating). When was the last time you lit a candle and read a good book while sipping a cup of tea (with your phone turned off?!). exactly.
So, let’s all take a snow day. And I don’t mean guilt-ridden excess – eating more or watching episodes of some silly show… I mean take some time to breath in... waste some time with God… read that book you know you’ve been wanting to get to, write that letter, do that inventory, make that cup of tea and turn your phone off… take a slow day as a gift. Perhaps even the way the snow comes – gently and slowly covering everything with pure white is a sign of God’s intent to cover us. I think it’s better to go with the cosmic hint... hunker down and see our precious time as the ultimate gift.
