Drat that Groundhog!
To see or not to see one's shadow, that is the question. Groundhog's day is supposed to settle the anxious question of how soon will spring be coming. It is simple really, should the groundhog see his shadow then six more weeks of winter weather; no shadow--an early spring. Come on spring!
Extreme cold, polar vortex, snow, ice, more cold, more snow, more . . . seems to be the common complaint of winter this year. Who even knew what polar vortex meant until this winter? Alaskans, Canadians, Russians? Surely only those living in the farther northern country really understood it. Winter, this year, has tried the patience of most.
Drat that groundhog! He should have stayed inside where he couldn't see his shadow. Instead, he just had to pop his head out for the full shadow effect. Now, just a few days later, snow and more snow blew through and covered everything once again.
Driving home from the grocery store (where the shelves were almost bare) in the storm, she caught sight of an owl soaring on the winds--buffeted about as he searched for his day's meal on the ground swathed in white below. With a quick dip to the ground he rose again with his dinner firmly gripped as the winds blew him about. Fighting the wind gusts, he glided to a stop atop a tree where he could finally eat his fought for meal.
Arriving at home, the world was blanketed in deep snow. What had been bales of hay now stood as mute, white mounds. Releasing the dogs from the house they ran and leaped in the snow. Catching flakes in their mouths as they ran with the sheer joy of life. The pup dove under the snow, popping up again yards away.
Leaping . . . playing . . . burrowing tunnels in the snow, she ran head first into one of the giant mounds of hay. Not to be deterred she popped up through the snow once again and ran circles around the bales. With the wind pushing behind her she leapt into the air, scrabbling for foot holds and scrambled to the top of the mound. Once there, she flopped onto the snow, panting as she caught her breathe. Looking around her she watched the world around, blanketed and covered with freshly falling snow. She loved this life.
From inside the house came her father, bundled from head to toe in heavy outdoor gear. He trudged through the snow toward the barn where the horses huddle out of the wind and cold. Carrying hose over his shoulder he connected the links to the spigot and filled the water trough once again. Hoping the horses would drink before it froze over. The huge animals made their way to him--draining the water--as he continued to fill the trough before disconnecting the hose to carry it back inside yet again.
A plow came past their drive, piling snow deep on the edges--clearing the road while blocking the drive in again. Once the snow stopped it would have to be shoveled by hand to clear the berm for their vehicles to get through. Schools were closed. Businesses sent employees home. The world slowed as everyone hunkered down for snow yet again.
Drat that groundhog! The internet/social media filled with pictures and memes of cartoons about the groundhog--even recipes for groundhog stew. The world was tired of snow and wanted spring. However, the calendar said it was only February--a bit early for spring. Yet we grow impatient for what we want when we want it--the desire of our heart.
A snippet of Psalm 55 came to mind:
I wish I had wings like a dove,
so I could fly far away and be at peace.
I would go and live in some distant desert.
I would quickly find shelter from howling winds and raging storms.
Life would be so much easier if only I had what I wanted--when I wanted it. The problem is our ways are not always God's ways. Our way is to look at what we want. God's way is a much bigger picture, greater consideration, meeting the needs of all--not just our desires.
The LORD says:
"My thoughts and my ways are not like yours.
Just as the heavens are higher than the earth,
my thoughts and my ways are higher than yours.
"Rain and snow fall from the sky.
But they don't return without watering the earth
that produces seeds to plant and grain to eat.
That's how it is with my words.
They don't return to me without doing everything I send them to do." (Isaiah 55:8-11)
God, who knows more than we know, help us to live with patience and tolerance to your ways in our lives. Gentle our hearts and still our constant striving for our own way. Open our minds and hearts to the bigger picture so that we may do what you have sent us to do. So be it. Amen.
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