What does 14 below have to do with it?

Photo: dailycamera.com

So, this morning I noticed that within 10 seconds of walking out our lodge door my scarf built up frost from my breath. My pink cowl was dusted with white crystals! As I passed the ski shack thermometer I glanced at the temperature: -14. Yep. 14 below zero. I don't want to know what the wind chill was. One of the guys on staff said that today's temperature gives a new definition to cold. And, one of the women holding her cheeks said that it felt like little needles prickling her face as she walked to the dining hall. It is (spell this out) C-O-L-D... COLD!


There are a number of ways we all react to this C-O-L-D! Some people hunker down into their jackets and hats and scarves and with hands stuffed into their pockets they plow forward, hardly noticing anyone or anything around them. Others complain about it... how cold it is and wait until the very last moment before braving the walk... or should I say sprint to the next building. Then, there was one I saw, and I kid you not, who just wore a turtleneck and hoodie... no gloves... as she did her work w-a-l-k-i-n-g! from building to building. And then, there are some who just go about the day with the attitude, "Yes, it's cold but we can't do much about it." These folk keep us light-hearted about the C-O-L-D, helping us see that we can't really do anything about it but bundle up and do the work we need to do and be careful about being out in it too long. Regardless of how we choose to respond to this COLD, we go about our work and stay warm as best we can.

As I thought about this, I realized that this is a metaphor for how we face challenges:

1. We hunker down and plow through it, just wanting to get through it, get it over with not noticing anybody or anything along the way.
2. We complain about it, waiting for the last moment until we have to do something about it, and then get through it as quickly as possible. Probably, again not noticing anybody or anything along the way.
3. We ignore it and just walk through it, not noticing the challenge but at least noticing there are others along the way.
4. We acknowledge the challenge and accept that it's there. We may make light of it but are aware of the people and things happening as we walk through it. I venture to say here that in this response, we may even help each other along the way.

Apologies. I lost the website to credit this photo.

I'm discovering that this sabbatical of mine is bringing challenges that I didn't anticipate. But, like the C-O-L-D I have a choice as to how I will respond to them. Choice number 4 will take the chill out of the challenge, its prickling needles, and will give me the chance to learn and grow. It will also give me traveling companions should I need help remembering to laugh and love along the way.