It’s okay to be happy now.

This winter was long. It has been cold and deep, and for some reason, it seems to have held on tighter than some. I think when you’re waiting for completeness, the wait can seem colder and longer. It’s tempting to feel that you will never be happy until you arrive at that place.

I’ve learned, though, that the real secret to life is to find a way to be happy now.

Over the past few weeks, the girls and I have gotten out into Yellowstone again.

We’ve watched Old Faithful in a blizzard and set up our little camp stove in snowstorms.

The colder it is, the more hot chocolate we make, and somehow, we are almost as happy as if the sun were shining.

Things don’t have to be perfect or even close to finished. But it’s okay to be happy now.

The sun is starting to shine this week and I think the snow may be almost behind us. The bikes have come out and many, many campfires are before us. But I am so grateful we smiled in the blizzards, too.