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DAVID BENTLEY'S WEEKLY COLUMN |
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THE THIRD DAY AFTER THE SECOND SNOW
Snow and ice and ice and snow for the second time in less than two months. So much for living in a Banana Belt! On the third day after the second snow, people finally took their chances and went to town. Driving below the speed limit and carefully picking our steps, we managed to join the community reunion taking place at the grocery. There were multiple conversations on every aisle, as if we hadn't seen each other in months. One friend talked about his daughter getting married in another country. His wife had met the young man and his parents previously, and the civil ceremony had already taken place. My friend and his wife are leaving next week to greet the happy couple and spend a few days with the in-laws. Fathers always struggle when their daughters grow up and pledge their love to another man, but my friend really had been caught off guard. He was trying to figure out how such a thing could have happened without him noticing, and seemed to wonder what else he'd missed while living life. Finally, an hour after entering the store, I packed two canvas bags of groceries. On the way home, I realized that living life is much like walking on snow and ice. Sometimes your steps take you through firmly packed snow, and you move forward with confidence. Other times you have to tread across the ice, slipping and sliding with each step. If you're lucky, you maintain your balance. If not, you take your lumps and move on. There are also times when you're walking confidently through firm snow but discover slick ice underneath. Caught off guard, you ask yourself, "What happened, and why didn't I see it coming?" Eventually, the snow and ice melts, and walking through life becomes much easier. On this third day after the second snow, I look forward to the thaw.
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SAN JUAN ISLANDER © 2008 |
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