Long Winters

Long winters play games with you.  They borrow time until you are so weary with the relentless waves of snow and bitter cold that you begin to convince yourself the sun will never rise again.  Long winters make you believe that no matter how cold and alone you are, you had better stay put, because to venture out is to chance a place that is even colder.  A place where you will be even more alone.

But we clear the path.  We clear it over and over because we have faith that one day the sun will once again rise high enough in the sky to sustain our efforts and illuminate our way, even if only until the fury of the next winter storm erases our effort.  Long winters test patience but build it at the very same time.  It's in the bitter cold of the longest winters that we experience faith.  And sometimes faith means believing you can find your way again, no matter how many times it is lost to you and no matter how many times you need to dig yourself out.  Sometimes the winter is so long that the banks rise high enough to cast shadows that stretch far beyond the point where we can see.  That's ok.  That's where faith takes over.

Put one foot in front of the other.  Take the next breath. Make the next best decision.

Take the next step.

Faith is knowing that the next step is the only one you have.