joy in a snow storm

Picture it...Sicily, 1925.  It was the worst of times....(ok, so I love me some Golden Girls!)  In reality, it was Bowling Green, 2011, and I had just ducked out of the office early, in an attempt to get home before the roads got bad.

When I pulled into the office a couple hours before, the roads were clear and there wasn't a snowflake in the sky.  Although we were under a "winter advisory" they weren't calling for it to hit until late afternoon.  I figured there'd be plenty of time to get there, finish the monthly meeting, and be well on my way home before the roads became snowy.  At least, that was my plan. 

Instead, the picture I saw was a suddenly very snowy road with the faintest hint of a path.  After one or two moments of feeling my truck slide, I very quickly decided this would be an un-fun ride home.  I prayed that the parkway would be clear because, after all, we were under a warning, why wouldn't they be treating it.  As I hesitantly entered the ramp, the answer appeared and it was yet another disappointment. 

White-knuckled at this point, I merged onto the parkway just in time to have a semi roar past me.  As the slush instantly froze on my windshield, I figured out why the roads were as bad as they were.  A quick glance to my dash registered a frigid 19 degrees.  Geez, this was going to be some kind of ride home. 

40 miles an hour on the parkway, where most idiots still flew by me regardless of the conditions, was bad enough.  Add to it that my truck was jerking, which increased my nervousness, and I was crouched down literally like the old lady I was driving as, because I could only see from the bottom of my windshield.  I couldn't clear it if I'd wanted because my hood was frozen so the wiper fluid refused to come out to play.  This all jumbled together to make for a very unpleasant and lengthy drive home.

The roads began to get a little clearer the closer I got to home, but at this point, I was such a wreck that I still couldn't make myself drive more than 55 mph.  I was ready to just give in, pull over, and let the winter weather defeat me when my knight in a white van appeared.  As my hero hobbled across the parkway, bent my wiper and cleared my windshield, my mood was on the mend.  The wind chill might have been in the single digits but I was suddenly warm from head to toe.  And yes, this hero was my husband!

Although Tim had already been to Butler county and returned home, a patient had called him back out.  When he called to check on my progress, we realized how close we were to each other.  Even though I argued, he had me to pull over and wait for him on the parkway.  I hesitated because I knew his foot was in pain, from a slip earlier in the week, but I also knew the tiny section of my windshield I could see through was getting smaller each mile. 

Just like my husband, he put his pain aside and never hesitated in helping me.  That's just how he is.  And that's why I love him so.  Thanks to a lucky break that put us on the same stretch of parkway at the same time, and to such a loving hubby, the last half of my ride was much safer and easier than the first.
I'm grateful for my husband...grateful to be home safe and snug...and grateful this is to said to be our last snow for the season!