When it snows in Arizona … (week 4)

I need to write a quick update (even though I already posted and shared a bunch of snow photos earlier this week). My brain is all over the place, and I have to sit down and corral my thoughts here before moving on to write or edit anything else. Thank you for making time and space in your day for my ramblings!

I knew that when we left for this trip, we would not come back as the same people; that is, I fully expected the four of us to learn and grow and change as individuals. One of the most exciting and fulfilling parts of this extended journey is finally meeting and identifying those lessons as we encounter them—often in the most unexpected ways.

Take, for instance, our recent Sedona snow storm. We had to cancel all kinds of plans when winter weather unexpectedly slammed into northern Arizona. Bella was especially disappointed because Grace, a high school friend of hers, was visiting from home. We joked that if Grace wanted to see a snowstorm, she should have just stayed in Wisconsin!

The lesson in this, of course, is that things are going to happen that are out of your control. A pandemic may come along and change just about every aspect of your daily life. Your favorite football team might blow its chance to return to the Super Bowl by kicking a field goal instead of going for a touchdown. Life happens, and not always in the way we expect or think that it should go. It’s not about trying to control our circumstances; it’s about adapting as best we can to the hand that we’ve been dealt. I don’t think the girls will ever forget the experience of making a snowman in the Arizona desert. Bella, who didn’t have any gloves along, improvised and put wool socks on her hands. It’s that kind of adaptability and ingenuity that I pray will serve her well in the future.

We also talk a lot in our family about, “What is our Plan B?” When things go awry, as they often do, we can sit and sulk and whine and complain, or we can pick ourselves back up, reassess and move on. Which is exactly what we did when the snow started falling.

Originally, Bella and I had planned to take Grace back down to Phoenix for her flight early Wednesday morning. Instead, the whole family packed up on Tuesday and drove two hours south, away from the snow. (It was surreal seeing the lanes and lanes of semi-trucks backed up along the interstate, which was closed to northbound traffic. If we had been anywhere north of Sedona, we would not have made it out of town!)

We had beautiful views of the snow-covered mountains all the way down to Phoenix, where the weather was sunny and warm. The girls found a place to make their own candles in Scottsdale, and we had a wonderful evening of Mexican food, bowling and arcade games to top off the night. On Wednesday morning, the older girls and I went for a quick hike while Tony and Alayna finished work/school. All too soon, it was time to bring Grace to the airport. Bella is not the only one who is already missing her!

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Now that it’s just the four of us again, we are trying to decide how to spend our last two-plus weeks in Arizona. Even as we set lofty expectations, we know that circumstances can change in the blink of an eye. If traveling during the year of COVID has taught us anything, it’s how to make lemonade out of lemons. And that when Arizona gives you a snowstorm, you build a snowman. Until next time…