Whine? Never Mind. . .
(Note: This entry is in no way intended to minimize the suffering of someone with lasting depression, whether it be clinical or caused by other situations--another reason I have no right to whine!)

I am a person who tends to get depressed as winter drags on and on, especially when winter happens to fall in the first part of pregnancy (always a time I struggle with depression). Naturally, I've been looking forward to spring, so I've been a little whiny lately because of the "teaser" 70's weather we had before plunging back into winter-like weather. However, sometimes I just need a little perspective. . .

Ah, spring! The sun is shining, the flowers are beginning to bloom, and I hear birds singing in the early light of the morning! I can go outside without a coat! I love to feel that fresh spring air on my arms, and I love sending the kids outside to jump on the tramp and swing on what's left of our swingset!

On a beautiful-and-in-the-low-70's Saturday, I am heading to Great Clips to get my hair (which has reached the middle of my back) chopped off like a sheep being shorn. Ah, the sun, the breeze, the wonderful day! We are going to Draper to meet some friends for delicious pizza at Nevole's (if you ever have a chance to stop there, DO!!). Justin asks if I'm bringing a jacket. "What for?" I laugh. But as we head toward Draper, the dark clouds loom over the mountains ominously. I nervously hope that they'll stay over the mountains--I really don't want a storm again. As we head further south, the day turns darker and the breeze turns into a brisker wind. I begin to grumble.

In Draper, the wind has really picked up, and the temperature has dropped dramatically. We grab the kids and run into the restaurant. We sit toward the front, where every time someone opens the door, the wind whips through the place and blows all over our table (and that's pretty frequent, considering it's the one of the best pizza places in the valley and it's a Friday night). I scowl at the weather and growl when Justin's friends tell me that Phoenix (where they live right now) is in the 80's and even the 90's. Grrrr. By the time we leave, the wind is blowing an arctic blast right out of the ski resorts and the clouds are almost black in the east. "Welcome to March in Utah! I don't know why I'm surprised--it's always like this!" Justin's friends laugh, and tell us about the homes they've been looking at in Draper. They miss the snow. I snicker.

The next week is filled with storms. Woe is me! The kids have to stay inside, the sky is gray, and I wish for this to just END. The week ends with a beautiful, slightly chilly day in which the kids can finally play outside for a little while and get their wiggles out just in time for. . .

. . .the next day's "light snow," which turns out to be snow dumping so hard I can hardly see the neighbor's house diagonally from us! We get at least 3 inches of snow. Spring? I hardly think so! We wear boots and coats to go to Grandma West's to visit the grandparents and also Uncle Reed and Aunt Sherrie who are visiting from Sutherlin, Oregon.

It's dark, it's cold, it's wet, it's muddy; it's not fair! I want sunshine, I want warm days, I want the birds not to freeze, I want glorious weather with moderate temperatures!!

But then I think of my Aunt Martha and Uncle Mike. . .in Fargo, North Dakota. They are hoping their home doesn't flood from the record rise of the Red River. Aunt Martha's filling sandbags at the Fargodome. Their neighbors and fellow-citizens are riding around in boats and traipsing around the city in below-freezing temps to put up sandbags, pump out water, and to man the dikes to make sure all is safe. They could be flooded out at any time in winter weather that is still pretty bitter. I see a picture of a man with sandbags. He is bundled up in layers of clothing, and his legs and arms are covered in ice from water spraying all over him. I am sitting at my kitchen table in my warm and safe house, not having to worry about a flood or to fill sandbags in the snow or to wade through almost-frozen water. I feel pretty blessed.

Just heard on the radio this morning: after a brief hoped-for respite, Fargo is now being inundated with a two-day blizzard. I will whine no more!!