Salt and Snow

Ring! Ring! sang my cell phone.

“Yeah?” I answered.

“You want to hit the library?” my friend Andrea asked.

I glanced up at the clock and then at the pile of homework on my desk. With finals lurking around the corner, I desperately needed a chance to study, and I couldn’t focus in my college apartment.

“Yeah, let’s go,” I said, gathering my books. I bundled myself in several layers before braving the frigid air and wading through four inches of fresh snow to Andrea’s car.

We set off for the library, grumbling about our mountains of homework. Just thinking about the next week made me nervous.

As we passed an intersection, I noticed an elderly woman shoveling snow from her sidewalks.

“Look at that!” I exclaimed. “Why is that little old lady shoveling snow all by herself?”

“We should turn around and help her,” Andrea suggested. Moments later, we pulled into her driveway.

“Can we help you with that?” Andrea asked, reaching for the shovel.

“Oh, no, I’m all right, but thank you,” she said in surprise.

“No, really,” I insisted. “At least let us finish for you. You must be freezing.”

She hesitated, but then gratefully consented to let us salt down the sidewalks.

We collected the salt and chatted with her as we sprinkled the sidewalks. The salt melted away the ice almost as quickly as our disgruntled moods.

After we finished, we went inside to meet her husband, who was unable to shovel the snow because he was recovering from surgery. We enjoyed some eggnog, admired family photos, and told her about our families. Then out of the blue she stopped and smiled at us.

“I’m so glad you stopped by,” she confided. “It’s just so good to visit.”

We stayed with her for about an hour, then hugged her good-bye and continued our trek to the library.

“I don’t think she really needed someone to salt her sidewalks,” Andrea said as we drove away.

“No,” I said. “She needed a friend.”

As I glanced at my pile of books, I realized I had needed her, too. The stress I’d felt just an hour before was nearly gone, replaced by blissful relief. I had been so focused on my tests that I couldn’t see how others struggled with bigger problems like loneliness, growing older, and even shoveling snow. I will always be grateful for that reminder to watch for opportunities to serve.