Snow and Life

Sooooo we have like 10 inches of snow, and my mom and I were out grocery shopping yesterday. I am a HUGE clutz, and my balance isn't a best as it could be. I was fine on the snow as long as it was white, and unblemished but, as soon as we were walking on the dirty, ran over, black and yellowish snow I came to my doom. I'd slip, trip, and fall EVERYWHERE, EVERYTIME and everytime my mom and I would just laugh and I'd get back up only to see the ground up close a few seconds later. This got me thinking. It's a lot easier to walk when we are on the straight and narrow, unblemished and perfect (the white snow) but it isn't always fun, and it isn't always what is best for us. Rather, when we make mistakes (the icky snow) we fall but are able to laugh, and learn from it and we are able to get back up.


You can't know TRUE happiness without having felt sadness.
You can't know TRUE love without having been through a heartbreak.
You can't value TRUE friendship until one of your friends aren't there for you when you need them most. 

But most importantly...

You can't know perfection (Jesus Christ and Heavenly Father) 
Until you know imperfection (Us) 

I was reading a story the other day about why dogs leave the world first instead of humans and it goes like this: 

"Being a veterinarian, I had been called to examine a 10-year-old Irish Wolfhound named Belker. The dog's owners, Ron, and his wife Lisa, and their little boy, Shane were all very attached to Belker, and they were hoping for a miracle. 

I examined Belker and found that he was dying of cancer. I told the family we couldn't do anything more for Belker, and offered to perform the euthanasia procedure for the old dog in their home. 

As we made arrangements, Ron and Lisa told me they thought it would be good for six-year-old Shane to observe the procedure. They felt as though Shane might learn something from the experience. 

The next day, I felt the familiar catch in my throat as Belker's family surrounded him. The young boy, Shane seemed so calm, petting the old dog for the last time, that I wondered if he understood what was going on. Within a few minutes, Belker slipped peacefully away. 

The little boy seemed to accept Belker's transition without any difficulty or confusion. We sat together for a long while after Belker's death, wondering aloud about the sad fact that animal's lives are shorter than human lives. 

Shane, who had been listening quietly, piped up, "I know why." 

Startled we all turned to him. What came out of his mouth next stunned me. I'd never heard a more comforting explanation. It has changed the way I try to live. 

He said, "People are born so that they can learn how to live a good life-like loving everybody all the time and being nice, right?"

The six-year-old continued, "Well, dogs already know how to do that, so they don't have to stay as long.'"



So we can turn that around. The reason why people leave the Earth when they do is because they have learned to love everybody, and God is happy with the life they lead. They come to their time because they did a good job of walking on the white snow as much as possible, and love the people around them. 

If only we all did that all the time. WHAT A WORLD THAT WOULD BE!!