February 2 - Lessons from Snowflakes

Barberry bushes along our property elegantly dressed in puffy snow.

By Magdalena I. García

It’s snowing again in Chicago today. Not a heavy storm, just some light snowflakes. It reminds me of a Zen saying on a card that I received seven years ago, on the occasion of my installation at the church I currently serve. Yes, I’m a card keeper, although I realize that just by talking about cards in the era of electronic messages I’m dating myself. On a shelf in my office, in a faded, recycled Easter basket with the long handle cut off, I have a collection of cards and personal notes people have given me over the last seven years. And once in a while, when discouragement clouds appear on the horizon, I pull the basket from the shelf and read a few messages.

One of my favorite notes is that Zen card; here is what it says: “No snowflake ever falls in the wrong place.” It’s a comforting message. It reminds me that I’m exactly where I ought to be. It speaks of destiny. But it’s also a humbling message. It reminds me that I’m exactly where I need to be. It speaks of purpose.

So much of our life has to do with finding the right place. We move into the right neighborhood. We enroll at the right school. We hang out at the right spots. We look for the right job. We pursue the right promotion. We shop at the right stores. We choose the right partner. We join the right denomination. We vacation at the right destination. The list goes on. But until we get to the right place, are all the stops along the way the wrong place?

Zen philosophy seems to contradict Western thinking. And so I wonder, wouldn’t our lives be much more enjoyable if we embraced this concept of every place as destiny? I’m not making a case for permanence; much less for enduring unnecessary suffering or abuse. Snowflakes eventually melt. But there is much growth and healing when we are able to accept the here and now not as a deviation or a curse, but as a place of learning and blessing. Then, when the time comes, we will be able to move along without second-thoughts or regrets, like a snowflake carried by the wind. Or the Spirit Wind.