This Indiana girl is COLD...a lesson in humility.

It's snowing and it is a whole 0°F outside but it feels like -40°F.

To brave the blustery winds, I will start 10 minutes before my anticipated departure to adequately turn myself into a ferocious-looking black blob. My knee high rubber boots are on, my 100% wool pea-coat is buttoned all the way to the 4th button, my face is wrapped like a present in my scarf (all but the necessary slit to see through), and my toboggan and gloves are put into place. As I open the door, I take a deep breath and pull the hood of my pea-coat over my most alarming and suddenly enlarged head. The wind having anticipated all this, eagerly awaits me and it greets me excitedly by blowing me back into the room with a happy-cold welcome. I recover by making my body rigid and doggedly lean forward to plod on out into the blustery graces of the day.

As I move along, I meet another blob on the way to my intended location but since neither blob can no longer recognize who the other is, we pass and greet each other with a stifled grunt and move on our way. The wind eagerly seeks out any exposed skin and since the only part exposed is the small slit in my scarf, my eyes are greeted with cold slaps; causing my eyes to water and my gloved hand to wipe sporadically at the wet, almost iced tears. I shove my hand back into my pocket and plod on, hoping that this seemingly long journey will pass if only my rubber boots can hurry to the intended entryway of warm bliss.

Since it took 10 minutes to ready myself, the only logical amount of time in removing my costume would be...10 minutes. After removing my scarf, hat, and gloves I shove the items into the pockets of my hanging coat and proceed to remove my boots. The removal of the boots is the tricky part of this procedure because puddles of melted snow litter the entryway. I am wearing my warmest socks and I do not wish to soil or cause any unnecessary discomfort to my already warm toes by having them shocked to the point of curling, if I place them into a puddle of icy/melting slush.
I expertly and strategically maneuver my way around the maze of lingering liquid and confidently proceed to the foyer door. I catch a glimpse of a strange creature in the mirror before entering and to my horrified dismay, I see myself. The locks of my hair look as if they were subjected to the introduction of a wind tunnel and are no longer put into place just right (I spent half an hour doing that), my eyeliner is streaked across my cheek from the sporadic wiping, and my red nose looks like I borrowed it from a clowns circus. My hands jump into attention and masterfully push down, straighten, wipe, and blot. The confidence level is seriously depleted at this point and I grab the last ounce of courage and humbly plod through the door. I enter and self-consciously look around only to notice that everyone milling about in the room is in the same state. They sympathetically give each another the same look - the look that say's, "you poor thing, you look terrible." With my humility and confidence in place I continue on to my intended destination, determined to see this day through no matter what I look like!

From all this I have learned that the cold, snow and wind are one of God's tools that teach those of us who might listen, humility for ourselves and a GREAT dose of respect for the people who actually settled up here in the first place! :)