the first real snow of the season and friends

It is snowing in New York today. In honor of the snow, I thought i would find a poem about snow or snowflakes and share it with all of you. Instead I found this beautiful poem about snow geese; it expresses beautifully how I feel about snow ...strange as that may seem. This i want to share with you. I hope you enjoy it as much as I.

Snow Geese by Mary Oliver

Oh, to love what is lovely, and will not last! 

What a task

to ask 

of anything, or anyone, 

yet it is ours, 

and not by the century or the year, but by the hours. 

One fall day I heard

above me, and above the sting of the wind, a sound

I did not know, and my look shot upward; it was 

a flock of snow geese, winging it

faster than the ones we usually see, 

and, being the color of snow, catching the sun 

so they were, in part at least, golden. I 

held my breath

as we do

sometimes

to stop time

when something wonderful

has touched us 

as with a match, 

which is lit, and bright, 

but does not hurt

in the common way, 

but delightfully, 

as if delight

were the most serious thing

you ever felt. 

The geese

flew on, 

I have never seen them again. 

Maybe I will, someday, somewhere.

Maybe I won't.

It doesn't matter.

What matters

is that, when I saw them, 

I saw them

as through the veil, secretly, joyfully, clearly.

Well, i hope you take time to go out and enjoy the beauty that is snow - the cold air on your face, the wet of snowflakes against your eyelashes, the way snow can brighten a day and fill your heart with childish joy.

Then, if you are lucky enough to find a friend willing to take a few minutes and play in the snow, go have some fun. Make snow angels, make a snowman, have a snowball fight. Then, when you are breathing heavy, wet and full of laughter...go inside and change into something warm and soft. Have chili or soup, hot cocoa and a glass of whiskey. That is the way to spend the first real snow day of the season. Go have fun and enjoy. This day will not come again. So...smile at someone...be kind...laugh at the snow and ... remember to take care of you