Surviving the Icepocalypse

For those of you who didn’t hear, Fort Worth was completely shut down when a freak ice storm by the name of Cleon came rumbling through. In 24 hours, it went from 80s to 20s with precipitation all night long. We woke up to a wintry wonderland…minus the snow. What looked like snow was actually ice and sleet that made the roads impassible and even the usually 10 minute walk to the campus nearly impossible.

It didn’t end there, though. During the day, the ice and sleet would sort of melt and then refreeze that night, making it slicker and more treacherous the next day. This lasted Friday-Sunday. Schools cancelled Friday. Many things didn’t open Saturday. All church activities were cancelled on Sunday. Monday, we carefully went back to work and school, watching for ice patches and thankful for our landscaping crew that salted the sidewalks and cleared walking paths for us.

What did I learn through all of this?

1.  When you find ice skates on sale, buy them! You never know when it will go from 80s to an ice skating rink around your apartment in 24 hours.
2. All Texans should learn to walk like penguins. That would help tremendously.
3. New vocabulary words! Who knew that words like freezing fog and cobblestone ice existed? Even if we knew they existed, who knew what they meant??? Ready for the next time I take my GRE test.
4. Making cider from apples takes a long time...and the cheese cloth is definitely needed. 
5. Sun is good. The sun came out for three hours on Sunday and it seemed like the heavens had opened and the Lord was smiling down on us! 
6. Sometimes, those fun moments with friends, those memories, are worth the fact that you are stuck where you are for days. Sometimes, the break from life makes the ice and the cold worth it. 
7. God is good. He paints a beautiful picture when he fills the trees with snow and the pathways with ice. It is a blessing that Texas doesn't get to experience often.

Was it frustrating? It some ways, yes. Was it craziness for those who had to be at work? Definitely! Did it cause some problems? Yep. But even in a crazy, freak ice storm, it's good to take a moment to enjoy the small things. Pictures, cider, decorating Christmas trees, trekking through the snow, cups of hot cocoa, a good book...oh, and studying for finals...