5 Degrees

It's pouring rain this morning and cold out but not freezing. It's five degrees above zero. Rain, at this temperature, is torture. I remember ten years of freezing cold rain during the winters in Vancouver. It goes right through you. There is no sunrise to speak of, just a lighter shade of gray sky each moment.

If it were only five degrees colder then all of this rain would be beautiful snow. It wouldn't be a drag, it would be a winter wonderland. It's amazing that five little degrees can make that much difference in perception. Invariably, there will be people who prefer the freezing cold rain to the snow. However, I am not one of them and I am the one writing this blog. I love the clean, crisp look of snow and I don't mind the cold. Most Canadians will tell you that there is very little difference between -10 and -15. Cold is cold and usually five little degrees matters not. Except today. It matters a lot. I think it's like that in most of life. Everything would change dramatically if we only changed about five degrees. It doesn't take much.