A Much Needed Reality Check

After my wonderful visit to the Virginia countryside that I love so much for the thanksgiving holiday, I was faced again with having to deal with the lines, cramped quarters, and the lack of sleep that goes with traveling. Airports are really interesting places because you can go to all these really interesting places, and say that you've been to those places, but not see any landmark or personality of the actual place. I have wanted to go to Chicago all my life, and I got the chance to go to Chicago this past week, but it was an airport. Airports are really all the same, with maybe a few differences from each one, but the functionality of them is all the same. So I could technically say I've been to chicago but I actually haven't. Anyways after transferring in Chicago to our flight to Salt Lake, my sister and I squeezed into our seats on the plane and tried to catch a couple winks seeing as we had been up since 1:30 am to ensure we didn't miss our flights. Our flight was delayed from landing because of what the captain called a 'light' snow. When we finally landed I was exposed to the first snow of the season, and there was excitement inside me. The only glimpse I could catch of it was through the minuscule window next to my seat, but it was enough. Our grandparents were there to pick us up to drive me to my car so I could go back to school, and they were going to drive my sister back up to BYU Idaho for school. They are old and do not go out when it snows, so driving on the roads gave them anxiety. When I reached my car I realized the effect that nature can have on ones plans. My car was covered in snow, and I had not yet purchased any equipment to try to tame the snow and reveal my car from the blanket of white that had accumulated on it. So after waiting for about 20 minutes for my car to warm up and try to melt the snow off my windshield, plus using my arm to shove as much off as I could I was finally semi confident I could drive. I set out to get on I-15 to head back to provo. The illusion that man can dominate nature is completely evident when it snows. There were snow plows everywhere, yet the roads were still covered in this beautiful yet sometimes deadly frozen powder. It was almost like the more man tried to tame this frozen substance, the harder it plummeted to the ground. I ended up driving a whopping 35 miles per hour all the way from Salt Lake to Provo, on a freeway where the speed limit is 65 miles per hour. This caused me to at first be extremely aware of what I was doing while driving, trying my best to stay on the tracks that had been driven before me so as to avoid the icy patches on the road. There were numerous cars pulled to the sides of the highway due to accidents and there were red and blue lights everywhere from ambulances and police cars trying to maintain order in this unexpected blizzard that had decided to make an appearance. I then soon realized that nature is a beautiful thing, but also a dangerous thing. The illusion that we can control it is void. We can try to control it's effects, but man is mortal and cannot control the force of mother nature. This is a scary thing, but also somewhat comforting as the same time. It helps me realize that there is something greater and more powerful than I. It actually helps me realize that when things go wrong, it is not always strictly my fault, there are other forces, stronger forces, that act upon me and the environment that I live in. I then was able to enjoy the beauty of the blizzard while still cautiously driving so as to keep myself safe. It was a give and take of interaction both through fear and awe of the power the nature possesses.