Oh the weather outside is frightful . . .

The snow came and came and came. For a city used to its share of winter weather, this season has been disproportionately generous. Even the most enthusiastic snow revelers have had enough, but news has it there’s more on it’s way.

A friend in Boston sent a photograph of her shoveling the walkway outside her house where the snow on either side is above her head. It’s been a long time since I have seen so much snow, but it reminded me of a truth I learned long ago: don’t let it build up.

I have learned the hard way that the best way to keep a driveway or walkway clear is to vigilantly shovel even if the snow is still falling. Done this way, the shovel loads are light and the work easy. Yes, there are more trips outside and more shovel aerobics, but they are nothing to waiting and trying to clear it all at once. Keep on it, and it’s a cinch. Wait, and you will have twice the work and run the risk of bodily injury.

In other words, it’s like living. The weather of life shows up whether we want it to or not. On relationships, careers, families, spiritual lives, physical lives . . . the snows will fall. We can wait until the snow subsides and do all the clearing at once, or we can learn to vigilantly keep the pathways clear. Yes, it will require more conversations, more time on our knees, or at the gym, but the work is lighter and easier if we stay on it.  Wait, and the mountains of snow will be overwhelming, causing us to quit or experience all kinds of unnecessary pain.

The choice is ours.