Respite

This time of year finds us wishing for better weather.  We are already tired of cold and wind and icy rain, snow and sleet.  The inside of the house begins to bore us even though there seems to be a thousand things we can do to keep the winter doldrums away.

Yesterday we got a reprieve...however brief it was.  Sunshine!  Blessed sunshine!  I walked down the hill wearing a light jacket.  The road was muddy from the freeze and thaw of the week before.  But muddy boots are just something you expect in January.

The wind was soft and mild.  The sky was vivid blue.  The blue that comes with chilly air, clear of moisture and refreshing to breathe.  In and out.  In and out.  What joy to stride along and feel the lightness in your step as you watch for birds and other wildlife also venturing out.

Ah yes...I must admit I saw my nemesis The Armadillo rustling in a patch of leaves not far off the road.  I didn't have my heavy stick.  I did not have my .22.  I only looked at him fiercely and he escaped to live another day.  I am a mild and calm person, but these beasts get the best of me sometimes.

On a happier note I sat on the porch after my walk and watched Andy as he mowed a patch of grass behind the house.  He enjoys getting the tractor out when he can do some good in the winter.  Besides cutting wood and busting it for our woodstove, winter jobs up here on our hill are few and far between when the weather doesn't co-operate.  No animals to feed, no fences to mend.  Just gazing out the window and wishing for spring.

As I sat there on the porch I felt a certain peace.  The last few days have been hard on several of us in our community.  Sickness, death, struggles that only each person knows.  But there, basking in the sunlight I felt that most of my worries were just not that important.  Life is good.  Rain and wind and sleet and death and sorrow and remorse dog our steps.  But when we have a break, when we are able to clear our minds, we realize that Power that surrounds us and gives us a respite from the storm. It seems to say, "Hang on.  Better days are coming."  And they will.  They will.  I know it.  And I believe it is true.