Moment in Time

The cold surrounds the house. Folks complain. But it is nothing like what I remember when I was growing up. Then, the house would creak and moan - and wind would howl.

One weekend, Clem and I had come home from college just before a blizzard struck. When we went to return, we drove out of town - only to be stopped by a huge drift ten feet tall. I kid you not! We got out of the car and stood there, craning our necks to look up at the monstrous drift. Guess we won't be going back for a while! Knowing the muscle of a cadre of snowplows would be out soon to carve the snow away from the highway. The good old days!

Today, as a cold Arctic front temporarily gives us temperatures around zero Fahrenheit, we contemplate our next move - shall we hunker down another day. Warm inside, our two cats curl up together on my desk under the heat of the desk lamp (Do they think they have gone off to the beach or to the tanning parlour) Maggie stretches out on her back with a sigh of contentment, gathering up the warmth . Shall we - or shall we not - venture out for lunch at a favorite place. Someone else's warm soup and a salad.

I read in the paper that northern Europe is canceling plane flights due to ice and snow. The same old, same old new normal - floods and droughts. Here, the concern is the sparse snow cover with the cold. I wonder how our perennials will fare with this temporary drop in temperature. My favorite garden catalogs wait for me to brouse - and order.

I have traveled to places where the weather is constant. San Jose' in Costa Rica, where it is perpetual spring comes to mind. Or closer to home with time I have spent in San Diego.If I lived in a place like these two cities, there would be no need to contemplate lunch. I'd slip on my sandals and be out the door.

Last night, Jupiter and the moon were dramatically close to each other. The next moment in time that this event occurs will be in twenty-six years. The odds of me being able to witness this illusion of such perceptual closeness in the future are slim - a reminder that always today is  all I have.

Moments in time - some are present moments. Others moments live in myr memories. My entire life is just a moment in time. How I use it is of my own choosing. I try to chose well.

Now for that soup and salad. I'm not old enough yet to get soft about a bit of winter cold.