Snow flurries began
to fall early that cold , brisk morning and I,
being a near teen-ager was so happy to see
the snow. We youngsters were off from school
for the Christmas holidays and I wanted to
see a white Christmas so badly that year. I
had begun to really notice the beauty in each
season and I kept hearing , "White
Christmas" being played on the radio and
that made me yearn for just such an
event.
Christmas came and passed
without snow but the brisk winter winds were
blowing and I noticed the darkening clouds
gathering and thought to myself, they look
like snow clouds forming. I continued doing my
outdoor chores and wrapped my coat a little
tighter to keep out the biting
wind.
As I finished my chores, I
noticed the flurries were becoming larger in
size which told me the snow would soon stop.
No beautiful white layer of snow today, I
thought. I went into our living room and noticed
all of the gifts still under the nicely
decorated tree but the pretty paper &
ribbons were gone now, our company had gone
home, and somehow, I just felt a little sad.
It seemed that all the anticipation had been
built so high and now the festive
decorations were not quite as gay looking as
before.
I hated the thought of going
back to school after the New Year began, for it
seemed such a long span of time between this
holiday season & Spring. I kept wishing
it would snow a deep snow so that everything
would take on a new look. Anything would be
an improvement with my down hearted
attitude.
Darkness came early in our
little village and I knew my Dad would soon
arrive home from work and he always looked
forward to a hearty, hot meal upon his
arrival. My Step-Mom was taking a nice piece
of roast beef out of the oven and as I
watched her stir a little water and flour
mixture and add it to the beef flavored
juices left in the pan....I noticed how
carefully she stirred to get rid of any
lumps in that mixture that magically became
gravy.
Hmmmm, the smell was so
delicious you could barely keep from sneaking a
taste. As She whipped potatoes into piles of
snow white fluffiness and put a small dollop
of creamy butter in the center of the potatoes
and added a little salt and pepper, it
looked like a food advertisement from a
magazine.
I had gone to the basement
for a quart jar of preserved corn and a pint jar
of preserved applesauce that had been
waiting to be enjoyed for months after being
canned. Everything was piping hot as my Dad came
up the steps to the kitchen. One could see
the look of hunger turning to a look of
anticipation. When our meal was finished, my
Dad stepped outside for a few minutes and upon
his returning inside, he said, "The snow is
coming down fast and furious along with some
sleet."
I could scarcely believe it,
yet running to the door, there it was and within
minutes we heard cars sliding around on the
road. By morning we had received 11 inches of
snow with a hard crust on top. I was so
delighted with this wonderland that lay so
pristine before me. Trees were coated on one
side with snow as if painted that way and
the snow was laying in the crook of the branches
just like a Christmas card design.
We
heated our home by a coal furnace and a wood
stove. Both created lots of ashes needing to
be thrown out. Dressing like someone from
Alaska, I grabbed a bucket in each hand and
started to the front of our home where the road
started to go upward on a steep hill. I kept
throwing buckets of ashes across the road to
help folks get a better grip with their
tires . I continued this for a little over an
hour.
My reward was two arms terribly
tired and aching, a back that was sore, an empty
crate of ashes and plenty of smiles and
waves from grateful folks trying to drive in
that snow.
I learned a valuable
lesson that day, the best gifts are the giving
of oneself for others benefit and the
rewards are a satisfied mind and heart from
knowing you did your best .
