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By Betsy Ore Glass

 Let love and faithfulness never leave you;
bind them around your neck,
write them on the tablet of your heart. 

– Proverbs 3:3 NIV

With the last week of February bringing about more winter weather, even snowfall, it can be a welcome sight to many, as it turns the gray bleakness of winter into a white glistening landscape. Snow certainly covers over all the imperfections. The leafless bushes and trees look like architectural masterpieces under a blanket of snow. The dormant flower beds suddenly come to life, if only for a day or two, until the snow melts away. On snow days I find myself scurrying back and forth from window to window, looking out to see it all. The birds get excited, too and travel in flocks from feeder to feeder in search of a buffet. The crackle of the fireplace warms my body and spirit. I remember long ago when we would dangle our wet snowy mittens over the fireplace screen. We were told that when they dried, we could go back out in the snow and play again. I told my own children the same thing.

Not everyone enjoys my love and thrill at waking up to a snowy morning. But for those that do, you know that in an instant it seems that our minds shift away from yesterday’s troubles and tomorrow seems too far away to think about. Instead, it is in this moment today that we take time to pause and be still to enjoy the unexpected gift that awaits us outdoors. It is on those snowy days that everyone seems to come together in unity of some kind. Things like neighbors checking on each other, sharing soup, getting rides to the store, sweeping off walkways. A spirit of generosity prevails. A snowy day reminds me of when times were simpler, too. We all came together in love, and our house was filled with laughter and joy from the surprise of a snow covered morning. But most importantly now, to gaze out a window at a white covered landscape is a reminder that God is greater than all of us. Just as snow mounts up, inch after inch, to bury everything in sight, God can do that, too, with us. He can heal our past and bury it forever. He can move the dark clouds that have hovered overhead for a long time and cause the sun to shine again on our life.

We are taught to act and react in love and to be faithful. That means we are to overlook offenses and the imperfections of others. Not to sit in judgment, but to love instead.

Imagine the snow that blankets everything around is to also imagine that love is powerful enough that it can cover all our pain, hurts and disappointments. To operate in love and faithfulness is to live in peace.

Betsy Ore Glass has long-standing ties to the Outer Banks. From Virginia Beach, her family bought a vacation cottage in the 60s and her love of the area began. Later in the 90s, Betsy and her husband bought a weekend cottage and introduced the area to their children. Then Betsy’s parents retired to KDH where the family gathered often. Reach her at betsyglass1@gmail.com or read additional Reflections at www.betsyoreglass.com.

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