As of midday Monday, as I write, we are immersed in white. Al shoveled a foot-and-a-half of snow for two hours this morning, then fell asleep in his armchair for a while. At some point this afternoon he’ll go back outside and finish clearing our drive. We’re expecting up to another three inches by nightfall.
I’m glad he took a break. The snow is fluffy, but even so, it’s a lot of work. I wish I could help, but between the extreme cold and my hands, there is no way for me to do so. Indeed, it’s been decades since I could shovel snow. The last time I can recall, we still lived in our prior home on a major street, and as I was trying to clear the foot of the drive, a plow went by and blocked it up again. The guys in the plow laughed.
Today, Al told me, the plow that was doing another pass on our street actually stopped and helped to clear the end of our drive as well as our neighbor’s across the street.
Looking out for each other is essential in a storm, all the more so today when the storm is not just weather-driven. To the people of Minneapolis, my heart goes out to all of you, especially to the grieving families and friends of Renée Good and Alex Pretti, as well as my gratitude for showing the world what it really means to be in community—in the most bitter, cold, savage circumstances.
I contacted my senators today to express my outrage and ask them to use every tool available to stop this madness when they vote on appropriations this week. It took all of five minutes. It’s the very least I could do. You can find contact information for your congresspeople here.
Evelyn Herwitz blogs weekly about living fully with chronic disease, the inside of baseballs, turtles and frogs, J.S. Bach, the meaning of life and whatever else she happens to be thinking about at livingwithscleroderma.com. Please view Privacy Policy here.
