Cold Winter, and Even Colder Hearts~

Winter is on my head, but eternal spring is in my heart. ~ Victor Hugo
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One kind word can warm three winter months.  ~ Japanese proverb
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It is soooooooo cold today!  Believe it or not, they said it was actually colder yesterday, with the wind chill.  Something like 4 degrees or so.  That's pretty rough on us Arkies who are used to winter  being 55 degrees , or maybe even 25, not 4 or 5.   I like winter for a little while.  I don't think I could live up north in Woodbury where my uncle lives.  He talks about having snow for 3 or 4 months straight there in Minnesota.  They are used to it I guess, and they salt the roads constantly and bring out the snow chains and big snow plows.  But, I think winter would be a very lonely season to have for that long at a time.  My heart starts to wish for spring, and even summer. About ten years ago, I had a very bad flare up with lupus.  I couldn't walk and was in constant pain.  When you are in that much pain all the time, your heart starts to feel like winter inside.  Everything frosts over, because your body is focused totally on how bad it feels.  You can't think of anything or anyone else.  But, one day I went to see Dr. White.  I told him about how I was feeling , and he had something very interesting to say.  I told him I wasn't sure if I could live with this pain anymore, it was just too hard. He told me to remember that the Bible says Jesus never gives us more than we can bear.  And that suicide is never an answer.  He reminded me that it would get better, and that I had people who loved me, and counted on me.  That I was still a person, and not just this diseased body.  The illness had started to completely overtake my life, my soul, my very being.  I was so appreciative of his wisdom, and his honesty.  Thank God for the warmth of Dr. White's heart and words.  And do you know?  He was right.   I started getting better, a little at a time.  Every day, I improved a tiny bit.  I think of how it could have been different if his words had  had no kindness.  If his manner had been cold.  See, we never know what kind of difference our words or actions can make for someone else.  I try to remember where my soul was in that dark time, inside I was in the dead of winter.  Someone's words and actions started spring growing again in my life. 


Here's to warmer weather, and even warmer hearts~ Ruby Jeanette