Learning to Love the Snowflake

After digging out from the craziness that Snowmageddon 2014 brought to the South, I have snow on the brain. More specifically, snowflakes and how, until recently, I never held a deep appreciation for them. My dislike for them started a number of years ago when a student at my former school stopped by my room to tell me how much she loved the Narnia display featuring hundreds of snowflakes my fellow teachers and I had created throughout our building to garner excitement for The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe book that the 4^th and 5^th graders were reading. I thought that was mighty sweet, considering I didn’t teach her. The next week, the little girl was dead from complications stemming from a childhood illness. From that point on, when I saw a paper snowflake, I felt a sting in my heart. It didn’t help matters that the next year, I lost my birth grandfather in January, once again amidst the snowflakes. It seemed like every year, the symbol of the snowflake brought some sort of heartache right along with it. My disdain for the flake mounted until it reached the point that I couldn’t stand the thought of them adorning a space that I would frequent. That is until this year. A dear friend, a former co-worker turned artist, appeared at my new school with a gigantic snowflake, handcrafted just for me from paper. It was meant as a gift for my new room and it was beautiful, I had to admit. However, taking the snowflake to my room required some courage. I really was hesitant. And then, a wonderful change in prospective happened. A co-worker sent a link to snowflakes and their beauty with a reminder that each one is a magnificent work of art. It got me to thinking about how something that is so intricately and wonderfully made could not possibly be meant to garner such a permanent sadness in my heart.  For the first time in a long time, I was reminded that although the flake will surely melt, God didn’t spare an ounce of His creativity in crafting them. Life is like that, isn’t it? People come into our lives and we just never know what the next day holds, do we? Treasure the gift of those surrounding you. Love them and don’t be shy about letting them know you are glad that they are a part of your life. Even if it means making your kids want to change their names and move to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho when you post a picture on Facebook of you smooching your hubby in the snow!