First Snowfall

Last Sunday I had the good fortune of witnessing my first snowfall in over 20 years. I’ve been to the mountains in Southern California and skied, but have not actually seen it snow in a very long time. Sunday's snowfall wasn't big by any means, but nonetheless, it was still spectacular.

I’ve been eagerly anticipating the first snowfall since my move to New England a couple of months ago, much to the dismay of my fellow New Englanders who’d rather prolong the first snow by several weeks. I wasn’t exactly sure how I’d feel the first time I saw snow, but when I woke in the morning, looked out the bedroom window and saw snow on the ground, I was extremely excited at the prospect of finding out.

As luck would have it, it started to snow shortly after I arrived home from church. I made myself a cup of hot cocoa, sat comfortably on the couch and stared out the window in total silence at the spectacle before me. I was completely mesmerized and awestruck by the beauty of it all. There’s something so peaceful about watching it snow.

Many things were going through my mind that day, but one theme in particular kept ruminating in my spirit. Each snowflake was unique. Not only were their sizes and shapes different from each other, but their journey was unique as well. Some flakes fluttered and traveled quite a distance in the wind, while others took a more direct route to the ground. Some flakes got caught up in trees or rooftops and never even made it to the ground.

It got me to thinking about how unique our own lives are and how each one of us has our own journey in life to follow. Much like the snowflakes, we can get caught up in things that prevent us from reaching our destiny and who's to say those obstacles aren't part of our destiny. Sure there are those who to take the fast direct route to their destination, but I suspect most of us flutter around a bit. We may even find ourselves caught up in the wind and heading in a direction we didn’t expect or can’t control.

Similarly, we don’t know what tomorrow’s weather be and like the snow we can’t assume that we’ll be here tomorrow. The good news is that we have Jesus who gives us eternity in heaven, but our time on earth here is short. So learn to make the best of your journey and enjoy it, for it truly is magnificent.

Workout Woes

Whoever said ‘no pain, no gain’ was obviously a masochist. I recently started attending a local fitness center and have been utilizing a personal trainer. My usual trainer moved on to bigger and better things, forcing me to go on a blind date yesterday morning.

I arrived at our scheduled appointment a few minutes early, introduced myself, and went through the usual small talk about my goals and what I was expecting from this relationship. I expressed to him that I was not experienced in these matters and was looking to take it slow at first. He nodded in agreement and proceeded to get right down to business.

About five minutes into our date I was ready to call it quits. Although he was a pleasant young man and I enjoyed our conversation, I was beginning to feel quite uncomfortable physically and wasn’t sure I’d be able to last the entire length of our agreed upon time together. During our small talk I discovered that he was an ex-marine. Immediately, I thought to myself, “I should have asked more questions about his background before I agreed to this meeting.” He is the third ex-marine I have spent similar such time with. The last of which made me do so many sit ups that for days afterwards, it literally hurt me to breathe.

After our scheduled session was over, I thanked him and politely let him know that I would not be seeing him anymore. I left the fitness center not being able to feel my legs, but grateful that I was not in any pain. The rest of the afternoon, I found myself grasping the railing each time I walked up or down stairs for fear of my legs collapsing out from beneath me. Last night I was unable to attend my church’s mid-week meeting because in my weakened state I didn’t think I would be able to hold the gas pedal down long enough to drive over there, let alone stand for praise and worship. Fortunately, this morning I was stiff and not in too much pain, but I’m afraid the pain is just starting to settle in.

So what have I learned from my blind dating experience? Always ask background questions before you agree to a date. Marines have a different attitude about what constitutes a good date. Be aware that marines will expect more from you. Pray for our marines because if their preparation is only half as challenging as how they trained me, I can only imagine what wartime is like. And pray for me...that I will be able to walk tomorrow.

15 Things I’ve Had to Re-Learn While Living in New England – Part 2

1. Water is more plentiful here. You don’t have to travel far to find bodies of water other than the ocean. There are plenty of streams, rivers, lakes, and ponds to swim, fish, kayak and ice skate in. Water also tastes good straight from the tap.

2. Canadian geese honk loudly. They can be seen and heard flying about New England. When I was a kid they used to migrate south for the winter, but it looks like more and more geese are sticking around permanently.

3. There are seagulls 50 miles from shore. At least there is an ocean somewhat nearby. Maybe I should start a proposition to rename them scavenger gulls or something along those lines. Californians would pass it for sure…oh wait, no, I’ll need to make it a bond issue for it to pass.


4. Freeway traffic is slower. The average speed is around 70 mph rather than 80.

5. Police travel in unmarked vehicles. I’ve seen more people pulled over for speeding by police in plain SUVs than police cars. Probably the most likely reason for #4.

6. Parking is not a problem. Shop anywhere anytime and you will be able to find a parking spot.

7. Left freeway exit ramps mess up the fast lane. Actually, there really isn’t a fast lane (see #4).

8. Roads are hazardous to tires. The weather conditions create a lot of potholes and uneven driving surfaces. I completely trashed a brand new tire within the first month of being here. FYI, Costco is a great place to buy tires. They replaced my tire for a $1 disposal fee.

9. GPS navigation is mandatory, not optional. If not for my handy GPS devise, I’d probably be living in Rhode Island or New York because I wouldn't be able to find my way home.

10. There’s a lot more road kill living in the country. I have to admit, my first night here I contributed to the statistic by hitting a kamikaze bunny. What is it with rabbits and my car?

11. NFL games start 3 hours later. The early game starts at 1pm and Sunday/Monday night football doesn’t start until 8:30 pm. I’m resolved to the fact that I’ll most likely fall asleep before the game ends and have find out who won the game by checking the scores the next day on the internet.

12. New England fans are loyal. It doesn’t matter how good or bad the Red Sox, Patriots, Celtics or Bruins are playing, the fans will cheer for them just the same. Unfortunately, there are a few Yankee and Giants fans here too, but I won’t talk about them.

13. There aren’t as many blondes. Or at least there aren’t as many fake blondes here. Now that I think about it, I haven’t noticed as many elective plastic surgery makeovers either.

14. There aren’t as many BMW drivers in New England.

15. It’s strange to see whole forests of trees with no leaves. Come to think of it, it’s strange to see so many trees.

What's in a Name?

The other day I was driving down Main Street and it occurred to me that it was indeed, the main street. It got me to thinking that in the old days people named things more practically. Being new to the area and not all that familiar with the town, I began paying attention to street signs. There is in fact a church on Church Street and School Street appears to have a building that looks like an old one-room schoolhouse. I took a side trip down Great Swamp Road in search of the great swamp and was a little disappointed that I was not able to locate it. However, I’m sure there is a great swamp in the vicinity. It’s probably located in the woods behind some houses or just beyond where the road ends. Otherwise why would they have named the road so?

The street signs led me to thinking about people’s names. Have you ever wondered how your parents arrived at naming you? Were you named after someone specific? Did your parents just give you a name because they liked the sound of it? Maybe they made up a name. Or maybe your name has some significant meaning.


In biblical times people’s names were significant and often gave one their identity. Take Moses for example, his name means ‘arrived by water.’ He was found by Pharaoh’s daughter floating down the Nile River, and the woman named him so. She didn’t name him ‘found near tree’ or 'cave man Bob’. Likewise Samuel means ‘asked of God’ or ‘God listens’. Hannah prayed that God would give her a son and He did. I could go on and on listing names and their meanings, but I won’t bore you.

I once asked my dad why I was given my birth name and not something else. He told me that I was named after the Greek goddess, Diana. Diana is the goddess of the hunt. Lately, I’ve been hunting for a job by day and hunting mice by night. So, kudos to mom and dad for having the foresight to name me appropriately.