Last night the one hour drive back from seeing my love in Fairfax, VA, took two and a half hours. The snow, that had been gently drifting down when I left, quickly turned into a heavy outpouring accompanied by icy rain.
I was so grateful that I had spent several winters in Canada, and that I drive an all wheel drive Subaru Outback. Even so, great chunks of ice attached themselves to my windscreen wipers causing them to thud, thud, thud, against the windscreen barely removing the sheet of ice that had formed making it incredibly difficult to see. Traffic crawled forwards. I skidded a couple of times.
It was scary.
I prayed furiously.
A few hours after getting home I saw that a sheet of ice had covered my front living room bay window making it impossible to see the driveway that lies right outside.
I was not looking forward to the shoveling that loomed in my near future.
Thick ice on top of snow. Nightmare!
This morning I delayed the inevitable.
So I was overjoyed just now when my doorbell rang. Standing there was a young lad with a woolen hat, shovel, and a mask covering what I knew to be his sweet, cheeky grin.
Anthony has shoveled my driveway a few times over the last several years. This time he is taller, fourteen, and much better at negotiating. Also there is some expensive, electronic, musical-wizardry he is saving up to buy.
Despite the sharp rise in the price of hard labor, I am delighted to have made a contribution to the creative aspirations of the upcoming generation.
And to not have to shovel.
Thank you, Anthony.
And thank you Lord!