Can you dig it? Lessons from snow shoveling

Just finished shoveling about a foot of snow from the driveway and front walk. Maybe I’m nuts but snow shoveling gives me satisfaction.

It’s a job with a clear objective. You can see what you have to do and your progress is apparent. There are no shortcuts. Measurement of your performance is literally black and white. You either see pavement beneath your feet or you see snow. When you’ve done a good job you know it and the subjective opinion of someone who didn’t do the work has no bearing on your feeling of accomplishment. When you are done you know you’ve worked hard at something and succeeded.

I wish everyone who is physically capable had to shovel their own snow. No excuses. No hiring someone else to do it. And no snowblowers. If it was up to me, no matter how wealthy or smart or privileged you might otherwise be, everyone who can would have to shovel their own snow. No unfair advantages, exemptions or loopholes. If you can shovel get to work.

It would be good for people from every walk of life to experience something bigger than they are that is out of their control and capable of dumping on them at any time. And every person would be responsible for dealing with it on their own and digging their own way out.

As for those who can’t shovel, I think every shoveler should have to spend two hours shoveling for someone else. They don’t have to know them. They just have to know they need help. The nonshovelers can do their part, too. Maybe they can make hot chocolate and cookies for the shovelers to enjoy when their work is done. Or perhaps they could watch the children of others who are out clearing sidewalks and driveways.

Simplistic? No doubt. But to me it’s simply amazing that we miss all of the good that can come from cooperating and working together to get something done without looking to assign blame or responsibility to others. When it snows it snows on all of us. When someone is hurting and needs help it should affect all of us. Less “me” and more “we” should be applied to more than shoveling snow.