Writing Ramblings - The First Snowstorm Of The Year

January 4th was the first major snow storm that hit the east coast. With high pressure followed by a snow hurricane of sorts it was really messy. It’s this type of weather that generally makes me wish I didn’t have to deal with winter.

As much as it’s nice visually looking at the snow, I don’t enjoy shovelling it. Or at least that’s how I think about it a lot in the past.

You see, I now tolerate winter and those types of events that winter creates for us humans to deal with. Don’t get me wrong, I would prefer living in Vancouver which on the 4th was actually raining there. But the thing with life though is that we are dealt the same hand and it’s up to us to play it however we like.

There are some people who hate winter and live in a place where you get hit with a lot of snow. Such is life. But our lives can be changed when we choose to work hard and make an active change to it.

I believe through this platform, actually putting in an effort to learn and grow from it is a good attempt at living on our terms.

But getting back to lives can be changed not only is it based on our actions, but also our passion, our interests, and the habits that we develop. These are things that determine how we each play our hands that we are drawn.

Some people will be aggressive while other tactical. Some people will say “better luck next time” while others will flip the table in anger when they lose. Life is a game in the sense that it can be played and perceived differently based on how we view ourselves and those around us.

It’s this particular revelation that got me to move away from the fact that winter is depressing or annoying because of the cold and the snow. Now I see winter as tolerable, perhaps even necessary.

Winter in of itself challenges us. It’s a great workout on your arms and legs, not to mention doing that work out warms us up as well. But winter also teaches us to get out there and do it.

My father had a talk with my brother and I about shovelling and all that before winter. It got me to think differently about shovelling the more I thought about it.

He said it was best to deal with it as the snow is falling as opposed to later. For one you have to deal with ice and the snow being a lot harder. But by dealing with it as it’s falling means you’re taking lighter loads and it also won’t be as hard.

You’ll still get a workout as you’ll be moving snow around, but it’s more manageable then than having to shovel the end result.

With the blizzard we just had they called for 35 to 40 cm of snow. If you shovelled 20 cm then you’ll only have to deal with 20 cm the next day. It’s better than dealing with 40 cm (worst case scenario) all at once.

It teaches us a simple lesson: take initiative and don’t complain.

To grow is to get out of your comfort zone, to stop whining about the cold and get out there and do it.

Because as much as life is difficult for you right now from financial issues, relationship problems, or just society and the world being harsh, things will pick up and get better.

It’ll get a lot better faster if you are more than willing to walk through the shit that life gives you. Some times that comes in the form of a massive blizzard.

To your growth!

Eric S Burdon