Sunday, March 22, 2015

The Time of Sparkles on Dirty Snow

The snow is melting here. Finally. We can see the front yard again and we pulled out some of the Christmas decorations that had frozen into the ground in January. Birds are pairing off, crocuses are pushing their green blades through the mulch, and our first flowers, winter aconite, are blooming. In spite of a few hiccups of late-season snow and unstable temperatures, spring most assuredly has arrived.

Watching the dirty piles of slush and snow seems cleansing. Have you ever looked closely at those melting patches? They are more than just tired hills of dirt-peppered ice. On a sunny day, the light hits it and sets it all aglitter. In spite of all, it is beautiful, and then it's gone. It disappears into the soil and the earth prepares to reward our patience with growth. Soon the yard will be full of green and flowers.


Homeschooling is like that, don't you think? If you looked at our house on an average day at the height of our homeschooling years, it was full of piles of books, paper, crafts, toys, and games. The swirl of activity left a mess in its wake. The clean-up seemed endless. The detritus of our unusual life filled our home. Now that it is melting away with two grown children, I stop and notice those sparkles as we advance into a new phase of life. I appreciate the close knit relationship of my children. I enjoy listening to their conversations, their aspirations. I try to help them where I can as they reach for their goals. As childhood recedes like a mound of snow at the end of winter, I notice the glitter of their personalities, their dreams, their hopes for the future. We see it up close for this brief period before they set out on their own to have adventures and begin their adult lives.

Don't forget to look for those sparkles on dirty snow.

7 comments:

Paula Vince said...

As somebody at a very similar homeschool stage to yours, I love your analogy and reminder. Those messy, all-together times pass so quickly.
But unlike you, I can't imagine having to wait until Christmas decorations thaw to bring them in :)

jugglingpaynes said...

Paula: They didn't completely thaw. I still had to chip away at some ice to free some of the wires!

Anonymous said...

I'm jealous! I still have 2-3 feet of snow in my yard. I feel sorry for any flowers trying to come up now. I do have lots of birds - morning doves, sparrows, cardinals, etc. and squirrels.

Love, Linda

sgaissert said...

What a beautiful post. And timely, too. I have been realizing lately that I have been ignoring someone's glitterings and focusing instead on "tired hills of dirt-peppered ice." I need to stop doing that, and I'm going to take your post as a helpful reminder. All my best wishes, Cristina. You are a shining example of what I love about blogging and bloggers.

jugglingpaynes said...

Aw shucks, Susan, thank you for your kind words!

Unknown said...

Awe! You made me get all teary :O)

Inner Elder said...

Thank you for a beautiful perspective on both maturing homeschool-ees and dirty snow. It was sheer poetry. Love you, Mom

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