Winter? Yes, Please!

When I was out on my walk yesterday, I started thinking about winter. It occurred to me that there might be some things that someone who lived in a warmer climate, one without snow, might not readily understand. Naturally, I took pictures to illustrate my points. When I got home, I thought of a few more ideas and added pictures from previous winters. Here you have my “So Now You Know” list.

1.       It is possible to make raised ice-footprints on sidewalks. And it is cool.

2.       In the winter, dogs aren’t the only ones who mark our fire hydrants. The long poles you see on the top of fire hydrants have a purpose. Those fire hydrants often become buried during a big snow storm, and we want to be able to find them again. (Incidentally, if you have a fire hydrant on your lot, it’s your responsibility to keep it accessible in case of a fire emergency.)

3.       If you live on the corner, you have extra shoveling to do, in order to make a way for pedestrians to cross the street.

4.       22⁰ F is a beautiful temperature for a long, winter walk. I know, because that was the temperature during my beautiful, long walk yesterday. “Cold” weather really doesn’t keep anyone inside. And yes, people go running in the snow/ice/cold. I don’t, but I wouldn’t go running no matter the weather.

5.       There is a reason to hang your Christmas lights early, and a similar reason you may not get them back down before April. It is called snow.

6.       Sometimes, this happens. It is very inconvenient.

7.       My rhododendron bush becomes a temperature indicator during winter months. When temperatures are below freezing, the leaves curl tight. They loosen when the weather warms up a bit.

8.       On really cold days, the sun’s rays sometimes refract in such a way as to make “rainbows” on either side of the sun, called sundogs.  They are so beautiful!

9.       Water seeps through limestone rock formations (bluffs) and forms massive icicles. Those icicles and the fancy formations of snow drifts are our “ditch flowers” of the winter.

10.   We sometimes enjoy doing science experiments in the very cold weather. When the temperatures dip in the double digits below zero, that’s the time to blow some bubbles to watch them freeze, or maybe toss some really hot water into the air (being careful not to toss it straight up, lest it fall back on you…) and watch it turn to ice before it hits the ground. Yes, that’s a real thing, as are air temperatures in the double digits below zero.

Here’s the thing – I really do love winter. It is beautiful and exciting and invigorating. I do not want to go south and escape it. I do not want to skip straight from fall to spring. I WANT to trudge through snow drifts and freeze my face off occasionally. I WANT to get sick of the cold weather and join in the complaining camaraderie.  I really WANT to watch all the little ones in my life enjoy going sledding, making snowmen, and just falling over in the snow from pure joy. Even when I think I am completely sick of winter and ready for spring, I still catch my breath when I walk out the door on a snowy or frosty morning. I just can’t help myself. I have written several poems about this season, because  I love it so much. Here are a couple of stanzas to express exactly how I feel.

I could not live in that distant place

Where Winter has never stirred,

Where she doesn’t get to show her strength,

Where she seldom, if ever, is heard.

I’m grateful for her companions,

Summer, Fall, and eventually Spring.

I know them all by their given names

Thanks to Winter and her mighty sting.

(From “The Winter I Know” by Elizabeth Traff ©2003)