We got a surprise snowfall this week, and I’m just in love. I know not everyone enjoys snow, and it can definitely be an inconvenience (especially when it’s heavy snow, like we had, and causes widespread power outages!). Maybe it’s because I’m a Michigan girl at heart, but I have a lot of love for snow. Here’s why.

Snow is beautiful. Winter is not. Winter is gray and dead and ugly, and snow covers it up. A friend of mine says, “Snow is the grace of winter,” and like the quote below, snow also beautifies. It’s especially beautiful when it gathers on the trees and gives definition to their bare black branches.

Snow is peaceful. I love walking in the snow, especially at night. We did this the other day, and several times, we just stopped to watch and listen. Snow might keep cars off the road, but it also adds a gentle muting to all other sounds. The world turns quiet, and it quiets my soul, too. I feel peace when it snows.

Snow is magical. It floats. It sparkles. And of the billions and trillions of snowflakes that have fallen on Earth since the beginning of time, no two have ever been the same. Tell me that’s not magic.

Snow is a playground. I’m not a skier or a snowboarder, but I’ve rediscovered my love for being out in the snow now that I have kids. They went sledding for the first time last month, and they are addicted. Playing in the snow is also a lot less miserable if you have the right gear! Now that we live in the mountains, going for a “snow hike” is on my bucket list.

Snow is unpredictable. Okay, I don’t ALWAYS love the unpredictability of snow, especially when we get less than expected! I recently read an article from the Weather Channel that talked about how difficult snow is to predict because there are so many factors (timing, moisture, jet stream…if you didn’t know I’m a weather nerd, you know now). But waking up to a fresh layer of snow, or getting 5 inches when only 1 was forecast, are some of the best surprises in life.

Snow is happiness. The white stuff of winter makes me happy for all the reasons mentioned above, and when the flakes start falling, the smile on my face and the joy in my heart are involuntary.

So let it snow enough to give me a winter wonderland, and I’m a contented girl.