Mother Nature, human nature and the congenial influence of snow…

Mother Nature has ways of letting us know that regardless of what we might think ultimately she governs our planet and she dances to a tune that is entirely of her own choosing.  Today it’s been snowing steadily since 10am though it wasn’t forecast to begin until late afternoon. Looking out of the window it seems this snow will continue into the evening and throughout the night.  The sky holds a ghost white hue as far as the eye can see and the sun and clouds appear deeply shrouded behind an unbroken layer of thick fondant icing.

For some reason snow has an instinctive, deep-rooted appeal; fascinating and beautiful there’s something untainted and purgative about it that arouses the senses. A gentle blanket of snow purifies, it erases the stains of our existence as bit by bit the asphalt world slips beneath its downy embrace.  Children urge their parents to come outside, build snowmen, play snowballs or go sledging.  In the depths of mid-winter shoots of frivolity, cheeriness and unbridled joviality emerge. People mingle in the parks and public spaces smiling and laughing together; in that moment they’re one human race united by snowflakes in a winter wonderland.  Troubling thoughts of stark or subtle differences are replaced with notions of simple enjoyment, light-heartedness and fun.

Snow is a conundrum, dazzling and deceptive just like Mother Nature herself.  These fragile, tiny and seemingly inconsequential flakes appear so delicate and harmless yet they flock together in deep drifts and frozen flurries.  Beneath their silky surface lies a core of iron, compact, unyielding, cold and inhospitable. Snow showcases Mother Nature in all her splendour and her harshness.

The challenges of sub-zero temperatures, earth frozen solid, food (for us and other animals) hidden from view and entombed in the ground denotes a wildness that cannot be subjugated no matter what we might choose to believe.

Snow is astonishingly beautiful yet it can be impenetrable and dangerous just like Mother Nature and much like humanity itself.  If we could remain united through the merriment of snow-play, preserving warm hearts and open minds all year through we might find ourselves laughing together so much so that we could set aside our differences for good.

We might even find we have the potential to become truly beautiful, a dazzling and compassionate human race the whole world could be justly proud of.

Imagine that.