Hear that?
The wind is really going tonight.
Snow is blowing sideways past the window.
Piling up against the fence.
And you're inside.
Under the covers.
Where it's warm.
For the next six minutes...
let the storm do the moving.
You get to stay still.
Pull the blanket up to your ears.
Tuck your feet in tight.
Maybe a cat is curled by your feet.
A warm little weight on the blanket.
Not bothered by the wind at all.
The house creaks a little in the gusts.
That's just the house.
It's been through plenty of winters.
Nobody is going anywhere tonight.
The roads are closed.
The plans are off.
There's a kind of relief in that.
Nobody can ask anything of you.
Let your eyes close.
Let the wind fill up the quiet.
Your mind might be like the storm.
Still swirling.
Bits of the day blowing around.
A conversation.
A worry about next week.
The long holiday weekend.
Everything it stirred up.
That's okay.
Let it swirl one last time.
Don't try to stop it.
Take a deep breath in...
And let it out slowly...
like the wind dying down between gusts.
Once more.
In...
And out...
Now picture a snow globe.
The heavy glass kind.
Sitting in your hands.
Inside, there's a tiny cabin.
With a little light in the window.
A pine tree stands beside it.
No taller than your thumb.
Give it one good shake.
Watch the snow fly up.
Swirling everywhere.
You can barely see the cabin.
Each flake is a thought.
The bills on the counter.
That email you still haven't opened.
Tiny ones too.
Did I turn off the oven?
What was that actor's name?
Now set the globe down on the nightstand.
Gently.
And take your hands away.
You don't have to do anything else.
Just watch.
Breathe in...
And as you breathe out...
the flakes begin to drift down.
Slowly.
Turning over as they fall.
In...
Out...
more of them landing on the roof.
Some thoughts fall fast.
Some take their time.
They all come down eventually.
In...
Out...
settling around the little pine.
Now you can see the cabin again.
The light in the window.
Snow sits on the roof.
On every branch of the tiny pine.
Soft and even.
Your thoughts are still there.
They're just resting now.
Down at the bottom, where they belong tonight.
A few last flakes are still floating.
Let them take as long as they need.
The globe is still now.
Everything has settled.
A soft white blanket on the bottom.
Outside, the storm keeps blowing.
In here, it's calm.
By morning, the yard will be white.
Smooth, with no footprints yet.
Nobody's shoveled a thing.
If a thought flies up again...
that's fine.
Watch it float back down.
Breathing in...
And out...
The snow has settled.
Let the wind blow all night.
You're warm under here.
The globe sits quiet on the nightstand.
The little light still on.
Snow resting on the roof of the cabin.
Still...
and quiet.
Goodnight.