It was beautiful.
Even though many hate driving in snow at night, I thought it a cool picture. The fog increased the streetlights which illuminated the white that blanketed us all. I went so far as to research the picture on my computer from three years ago and found out exactly when I took the picture.
9:17pm, December 17th, 2020.
Tonight, at 9:16pm, December 17th, 2023 I went outside, stood in the middle of the road, moved (because a car from one of the dozen or so homes above us decided at that very moment to drive down the street...), returned to the center of the street and snapped a picture.
Obvious differences.
There's barely any light in tonight's photo. There is some fog--or smog--lower in the valley, but the camera didn't pick it up. The picture doesn't work at all, except it was taken exactly three years to the day--to the minute--as the one before it.
For our family, winter in the lands close to Idaho have proven something out of the ordinary. I've always loved winter, and I still do, but last year scarred us. As strange as that sound, it's true. I am thankful for the past three years, the adventures we've had, the memories. Had I known what was coming when I stood outside on a cold snowy December night three years ago, I might have made other choices. There's the rub, though. We can never know that.
I wonder what I'll be doing three years in the future, December 17th, 2026. God willing, I'll be here to chronicle the day, or at least, a small part of it. Will we be on this street? Perhaps. Will I remember to go out on the street at 9:17pm on 12/17/26 and take a picture? There's a lesser chance of that. But, if I do, I hope that when I look back on December 17th, 2023 the decisions I made since then were good ones.
After all, that's all that really matters.
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