Snow Daze

Almost everyone who reads this lives in the Midwest, so I'm sure you're all getting snow again today, too. Yay. I get that the snow is fun if you are a student or teacher and get to stay home. But if you have a job you still have to go to - or are unemployed and this isn't getting you out of anything - it can get old pretty fast. I'm just ready for safe driving conditions... I don't really have anywhere to go, but the lack of freedom to take off is making me feel a little claustrophobic!

I'm working on a having a better attitude about it, though. I keep thinking about my beloved friend Marcus...he would have enjoyed every minute of this snow storm and said such eloquent things to remind us all how beautiful it is. My little sister and I bundled up and played outside for awhile earlier, and I found myself lying on my back, watching the snow fall through the trees and crying. Crying for a life cut too short, for myself and so many others left to deal with this tremendous loss, for the beauty of nature and how rarely we actually see it, and for so many other things I can't quite express. Then I heard my sister giggling and running through the snow, sat up and wiped the tears and snowflakes off my face, and felt just a little bit better. I still think about Marcus every day, and I hope that never changes. He was such a rare soul - a man who was nothing but good, all the time. His memory is an ever-present reminder to me to be a better person and to appreciate every little thing around me. Thanks for helping me notice something magnificent today, friend!

I mentioned playing in the snow with my little sister. I think it's fitting to discuss this ball of chaos we call Gracie for a few minutes. She's the most adorable little thing in the world. She's quite the negotiator, too... if you tell her no, she'll modify her request and offer to do things for you until you cave. She loves to text, too - she asked the other day if she could text our aunt Amanda and when we got a response she said, "oh good, our message made it all the way to Kansas City!!!" :) She's been sleeping with me since school is canceled, and the other night she saw me changing, gave me a concerned look, then: "it's weird to see adults in their underwear <5 second pause> I can touch my nose with my tongue." You can always count on her for a laugh...

She talked me into painting her fingernails today. Now, I bet you've never seen me with my nails painted. And if you have, I was commenting the whole time on how awkward I felt about it. There are a few basic things that EVERY girl just knows how to do by the time she's in middle school. Every girl but me. I cannot, for the life of me, put hair in a centered, lump-free ponytail. And I cannot paint nails. I can paint entire fingers and toes, but not nails. Lack of practice might have a little bit to do with this, but mostly it's the fact that I have some sort of pre-Parkinson's or something and fine motor tasks literally make me tremble. I was painting and she kept encouraging me... "see Natali, I knew you could do it! Why is your hand shaking, are you cold? It's funny that your tongue is sticking out a little!"

Anyway... it's been a good day. :) On top of the things I already discussed, I got to try my new SUV in the snow for the first time (it was incredible) and I finally got my health insurance card. And for the last couple of hours, mi amiga Maria has been sharing some of her favorite Spanish songs with me and telling me the stories behind them. Which brings us to...

Today's STD! It's a gorgeous, heart-breaking song about La Llarona - an old Mexican legend about a woman who drowned her kids in order to be with the man she loved, only to be rejected by him. She was so broken-hearted she killed herself, and when she got to Heaven they turned her away, saying she couldn't come in until she found her children. So she wanders around by the river, lost and crying forever. Incredibly sad, but I love stories passed down for generations. And this song is soooo beautiful! Gracias, mi querida!