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| How snow and winter should be viewed |
When I was a kid, growing up in the green, mild, northwest I dreamed of snow. I dreamed of sledding, of white Christmases, and beautiful flakes falling silently to the ground. Oh sure we saw snow on the mountains, and occasionally had a snowfall. But it was a rarity. Snow meant you stayed home from school, played in the 30 degree weather and drank hot cocoa. Maybe even gathered enough snow together to make a brown, green and white snowman.
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| Last winter the view from the living room |
Then I moved to the frozen north. A land where snow is expected. Where the roar of snowmobiles is a regular theme during the winter. Where nothing shuts down for the snow, and it NEVER GOES AWAY. Not for years. Snow coats the cars, causing things to come into being like snow brushes. Snow brushes people! And snow shovels are the norm. Salt coats your mouth and your shoes in the futile attempt to keep your walkway clean.
And to make matters worse. The temperature plummets. It's amazing how warm 15 degrees feels after 2 weeks of highs at zero. And I am not talking Celsius. This starts in November, and lasts till April. Then fades away into a sea of brown sad earth until in JUNE (JUNE!!!) things really burst into color. Until October (SEPTEMBER!! Sometimes!)
Winter is starting here. Yesterday our temperature went from 60, to 40, and today the high is supposed to be 38. Snowflakes fell, and only a few hundred miles away, they had a first class blizzard. Anxiously I watched the weather map as the white crept closer. It's only a matter of time, I can feel it closing in. And all I can say is:
I'm dreaming of a green Christmas, just like the ones I used to know. Where Mt Rainier glistens and children listen for the sound of raindrops in the road.
At least it isn't completely frozen yet and there's no chance I'll slip on ice and hit my head and freeze to death before anyone can find me in the parking lot. That'll be a few more weeks yet.
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