blizzard of 2015...

on saturday we had a significant snow storm.  it was fun and it was the first real snow storm this year.
that was until today when we got about 30 inches more.  today's storm cancelled school, cancelled work, closed the airports and put a ban on driving.  a historical event where everything came to a standstill.

but back to saturday.  we never did make dinner. since then everything has felt like a standstill

mid afternoon i got a txt from the couple we were having dinner with that said "we need to cancel" i need to help my sister  - her father in law passed away.  within 24 hours my friends sister would have also lost her son.  as i type these words i still can not really comprehend what has happened.  i talked to my friend last night and again today at length.  we laughed,  we cried, we are parents ourselves and fully aware that there could be no greater heartache than losing a child. i want to say the right thing,
i want to be able to help where i can.  i want to bring comfort to the family but this is one of those
situations where everything feels like it comes up short.
we cant always make sense of a story when we are in it, and sometimes it will never make sense.
sometimes the heart just breaks.   i am reminded of the importance of friendships and family and how much we all need each other.
i can only be here for them if they need me.   i wish them resilience, hope and optimism.
this is a story that begins with evil, an evil that can happen to anyone.  something that can sneak up on you and take over your life.   but i want there to be hope.  i want to believe that somewhere in the darkest of days the darkness will be highlighted by light.  i hope they will have the courage
to over come the darkness.  i hope when they feel like a lonely drop in a vast ocean, they will remember they are not alone.  i hope they know anything that happens to them does not define them.
i pray they don't shut themselves off from life, i wish them strength.  i hope they surrender the guilt, the despair,  please don't let the story stop where evil writes a chapter, say yes to life in spite of everything.
it's another reminder on exactly what is important.  take joy in the precious simple moments,  pay attention to everything and live for today.
can you live the life you have been given no matter what? it is a much bigger question than anyone should ever have to answer.  but, there is nothing they could have done, they couldn't have known and they cant let the darkness define them.  i pray they don't shut themselves off from life.

please keep them in your prayers.

love sent, xoxo