I did my walk today. I dressed for the weather; shirt, sweater, winter coat, gloves and winter boots. The typical blustery wind was present but something was definitely missing; the snow. I walked on completely clear sidewalks; no icy patches, no previously worn pedestrian path and no imperfectly shoveled trails. The only evidence of any accumulated snow was a continuous line of debris left over from a sidewalk clearing, much like the sediment layer from a melted glacier. This time last year I was trudging through mid calf snow drifts, stacked tall with rock solid ice chunks created by multiple plows of the busy road.
MLK last January
This year? Nothing. I must admit, this lack of snow has me in a bit of a panic. I’m wondering if this is just a La Niña type event. Or is this the new Mid-Michigan? This might offend some, but I really hope it’s just a fluke!! I can’t imagine a winter with no skiing, no sledding or no shoveling. There would be no showing my kids the frolicking nature of animals as we use our sleuth skills to track their movements. There would be no snow ice cream, snowmen, snowball fights or snow forts. Every year when the snow is packy I create some sort of creature out of the snow. Ellie still brags about my snow whale. Would this tradition melt away?
Our front yard March 2010
Closing in the on 25th day of January with only a total of five paltry inches of snow is disappointing at the least, devastating at the most. How am I supposed to work off the Christmas weight gain without a few hours of skiing, sledding and/or shoveling each week? In Mid-Michigan we need the snow. No, really, we do. The sight of fresh, clean, white crystals falling from the sky lightens the heart and soul. It covers over a multitude of trash and other unsightly objects. It creates a blanket of purity across the land.
Too much?
Was it the last part about purity?
All right, I understand. Not everyone LOVES the snow. Can we agree that it’s really pretty though?
I can live with that.
Trees in front of my Cooper Ave. house many years ago.
Our driveway in the Fall Blizzard of 2011 (November 30, 2011)
City Saunter 