Just a little bit...

That’s what I needed today. Just a little bit, of snow, that is, an inch or so. Just enough to cover the world around me with hope. A little more moisture for the wells. A light coating to help me through the depravity and hatred in the world. A little bit of snow to cleanse the outside of my car. Like manna from the heavens to soothe my soul.

It helps that it wasn’t a nor’easter. That’s when the snow is heavy and burdensome, and fears of roofs or decks failing bring increased anxiety. I see how flexible the trees are until they aren’t, and they snap upon whatever lays below.

It helps it wasn’t an ice storm. Ice on the forests around me are deeply beautiful, but but dangerous. As we know, everything is covered, from the electric meter on the house to the tiny branches on bushes. The roads become nightmarish, power outtages from trees falling on lines, and more anxiety - the kind that makes me put on ice grippers and slowly walk my way to where I need to go outside. No one wants to spend the rest of the winter or spring inside, with broken bones or a concussion.

So, yes, it was just an inch or so of light, fluffy snow. Not the kind that builds snowmen. But good for making snow angels! Easy to sweep off the car, or leave ON the car as I glide down the hilly unpaved back roads to the rest of the world - with the snow easily flying off.

When we are stressed, everything begins to pile up. Even something we enjoy doing can suddenly become nerve-wracking. It’s the addition of another responsibility, another task with a schedule that may be overloaded. Sometimes it isn’t that hard, having one more thing to take care of or do. But, in these days, if one feels any outrage at the behavior of our administration or its minions — in almost all matters, foreign or domestic, an extra item on the list of “getting things done” may put one over the edge.

If you are feeling that way, it’s time to pause. To be fallow in a way that makes sense for you. Today, for me, it was postponing travel to have a day of sanity at home. I rose for tea at 6:30 am and went back to bed until 10 am, having had a better sleep. It was ordering yarn for the resistance hat I will make during the rest of these cold and snowy days. It is writing, as that brings to me a sense of wholeness and cleansing. I tend to get out what’s been churning and stirring inside of me. And I place it before you, hopefully, to commiserate and offer some bits of kinder humanity in the process.

So, I am grateful for just a little bit of snow. A little bit of hope. I little bit of nourishing. A little bit of joy. A little bit of pause. For these things are a recipe for fortitude, endurance, compassion, and kindness. All so much needed today.

In these little pieces of light in the darkness, pauses in the chaos, or crumbs of bread for sustenance, God is near. For as we each share one small light or season the world with acts of love, the dawn breaks: shining, clarifying, and healing. What is heavy becomes manageable. What has led to despair can be transformed into seeds of hope.

Where are those bits of light shining for you through the crankiness, the chaos, the cloudiness? Here are some I have witnessed.

At my ortho doc’s office, both he and the staff light up each visit with their great sense of humor and their expert wisdom. Come to think of it, my dentist also has a GREAT sense of humor, which also renews my spirit. Laughter renews us. Laughter that comes from what is wacky or quirky or ha-ha funny, like the antics of pets. Not the kind that demeans, humilates or isolates.

At the bakery where I shop, the staff make tasty, healthy bread and treats. One of the owners sends out an email each week with their latest news, including a baked goods schedule and often, a few jokes. On their front door is the sign “if you need a free loaf of bread, just ask.” Their creativity, generosity, and yes, laughter, are a blessing.

There is the deli where I am known by name. It is significant to be remembered, and it means a lot. I’m not just a number or an order. I am a person.

There are all the people in our country and in the world who defy acts of violence and hatred, who are uniting to offer a new vision of goodness, grace, and hope. Each one inspires me. Individuals bonding together for the sake of others in need proclaims the hope that we can be led by the greater good. I tear up and get chills when I hear people in Minneapolis singing in resistance, with these words:

We are here, in our city, our love for each will carry us through. Yes, our love for each other will carry us through. Yes, our love for each other will carry us through.

Maybe these are just little bits of stories, small verses of song, but they uplift and encourage me. May you recognize those little bits which bring you joy and hope. May you offer little bits, small seeds of good tidings, a little light, a little salt or yeast, for the rising of all that is good and holy in this world.

He put before them another parable: “The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” Matthew 13:31-32, New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition

This little light of mine, I’m gonna make it shine… originally a children’s song, a spiritual which is often used as an anthem against injustice

A little yeast works through the whole lump of dough. Galatians 5:9, Common English Bible