It snowed last night. A lot. For these parts anyway.

We woke up to about 9 inches, and because we live in a part of the country that doesn’t get much snow, and therefore has very few snow plows, school was canceled, and the State Patrol was telling people to stay home unless they absolutely HAD to be out driving around. So that’s what we did. We stayed home. We watched the snow fall for several hours. We marveled at the icicles dripping from the roof.

This Florida girl still finds snow a beautiful treat. And we were happy and grateful to be inside where the heat was keeping us warm, and the coffee was piping hot.

The blanket of snow made everything quiet outside, and that translated to quiet inside.

My son, who was down with a stomach virus yesterday, snuggled up with his blankets on the couch in front of the fire. He turned on “Spiderman Homecoming” for the hundredth time, and sipped his Gatorade as he watched. My daughter got up to make her tea and toast, and with a reprieve from her college classes, decided to return to the warmth of her bed to sleep well past noon.

Meanwhile, my love and I made a breakfast of eggs and bacon and debated the merits of him journeying into work. We realized halfway through the newscast we were watching that he should stay home, and after a few emails, his decision to stay put was made.

Fortunately, we did our grocery shopping yesterday and had no reason whatsoever to go anywhere at all. I decided to get a pot of chili going – along with a load or two of laundry – and with music playing and the snow still falling, we got down to the serious business of snow-daying to the hilt.

Sweats were donned, along with warm socks, and once the chili was bubbling away on the stove, and the kids were both sleeping soundly again, we decided to bust out some games. We got out Quirkle (an old favorite), and then moved on to Gin, a card game my boyfriend’s Nana used to play with him when he was little.

 

We played three games (I won two, but who’s counting?), and as we played, I sat across the table from him and thought about how lucky I was to have him here with me. The fact that we can have fun doing absolutely nothing only makes something like playing games with him even more fun. He never fails to make me laugh my ass off, and today, he laughed so hard he needed his inhaler.

At about 4:00, we decided it was time to eat. J made some of his famous “J Cake” (which is deliciously doctored-up cornbread mix) in muffin form. The spices he added to the muffins were the perfect complement to the heat of the chili, and we sat and ate every delectable bite with relish. It was honestly the best J Cake he’s ever made, and it was my best batch of chili to date. The perfect combo for this snowy day.

And now we sit, sated, as the sun goes down.

The temperature hasn’t risen above 26 all day, and we’re expecting a low of about 18 here tonight, which is very cold for this part of the country. I’m going to make myself a cup of coffee here pretty soon, and we’ll probably turn on the TV in a little while and try to find a movie or series to watch. My son is still on the couch in his blankets, and my daughter came out of her room for food before returning to do some school work.

It’s so quiet.

The snow brings things to a standstill here, and it’s the kind of standstill that’s really very good for the soul. I think it’s because we’re gifted a day to stay in – a day that everyone’s gifted. And because everyone gets it, that makes it OK to stop and be still. That quiet that comes with the snow can just as easily quiet your spirit.

All you have to do is let it.

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