Its been snowing in Paradise.

Its been snowing here lately, never really enough to shut the town down. I love the snow. I'm not quite sure why beyond the color. I think it has something to do with how it dampens the noise and keeps you from seeing long distances. It seems to make the world smaller, simpler, and less harsh.

What does that say about me? Hmmmm....

Snow on the good and bad, the nice and nasty.

Today it snowed in Baghdad for the first time that anyone living there can remember, some say maybe a century.

People woke each other in the early morning hours to make sure the could share the experience, and as in the attached picture, parents took their children out to walk in the drifting snowflakes. One college student said "I rushed quickly to the balcony to see a very beautiful scene... I tried to film it with my cell phone camera. This scene has really brought me joy. I called my other friends and the morning turned to be a very happy one in my life."

News reports related that some people wondered aloud if it was a sign from God. They additionally reported no known incidents of violence in the city.

The final paragraph of the Associate Press article read:
"For a couple of hours anyway, a city where mortar shells routinely zoom across to the Green Zone became united as one big White Zone. As of late afternoon, there were no reports of violence. The snow showed no favoritism as it fell faintly on neighborhoods Shiite and Sunni alike, and (with apologies to James Joyce) upon all the living and the dead."

It reminded me of something else I had read:
"You're familiar with the old written law, 'Love your friend,' and its unwritten companion, 'Hate your enemy.' I'm challenging that. I'm telling you to love your enemies. Let them bring out the best in you, not the worst. When someone give you a hard time, respond with the energies of prayer, for then you are working out of your true selves, your God-created selves. This is what God does. He gives his best-- the sun to warm and the rain to nourish-- to everyone, regardless: the good and bad, the nice and nasty. If all you do is love the lovable, do you expect a bonus? Anybody can do that. If you simply say hello to those who greet you, do you expect a medal" Any run-of-the-mill sinner does that."

Matthew 5:43-47 (The Message)

The snow fell on everyone, insurgent and soldier, Iraqi civilian and American contractor, and for a short while there was peace. May God grant peace to the people of Iraq.