Winter Memories

I use to watch the weather channel all the time when my children were small and I lived in a cold climate. It stayed on almost continually and when I visited my close friend who was also my sister-in-law, we watched it together. Her husband, my youngest brother, along with my husband always laughed and made fun if they came in and we were watching the weather channel. We didn’t care; especially around this time of year it was a must and the music was always great on there; with Christmas music by this time of year.

It was really a thrilling expectation starting before Halloween sometimes. A winter storm could pop up at any time now. That meant a run to the store and stock up on groceries, even if you had enough to do you through the winter, you had to imagine you may be snowed in days and days and you wanted plenty to eat that was 'snowed in special'. Being snowed in really was quite fun, for a couple of days, anyway.

There would always have been a run on everything when you got to the stores. Was it only me who got the last loaf or two of bread? The lines were long and cashiers and customers kept an eye to outside. Poor cashiers, I always thought, they didn’t get to rush home.

How many times, I cannot guess, the snow would start as I was checking out, the car completely covered as I threw the groceries in and I would just make it home before the roads got treacherous! The snow seemed to take on a personality competing with you, faster than the wipers, blurring your vision. That last mile could be real iffy; so exciting too. Like bungee jumping I would imagine; if I were that stupid.

I would gather up candles, flashlights, warm quilts and dig out the guy’s long johns and our warm pajamas, thick socks and fuzzy housecoats. All the time I have the weather channel on and stop and listen and see where the storm is worse now, how close is it, how bad will it get? Looking out the window I could almost tell if it was going to be really deep by the speed and density. It was beautiful and so scary all at the same time.

My son and daughter might be at cousin’s or friend’s houses a couple of streets over and that was alright. If they were close I never worried. They would be home for supper. Soup was simmering and bread was baking, they would smell it, I had no trouble getting them home for meals.

I had a red wood burner fireplace in the living room. We could watch the flickering flames and the snow fall all at the same time. I bought the jiffy popcorn to pop over the flames sometimes. Why was pretending to rough it so much fun, the threat of danger so exciting?

I would stand and watched out the window at the snow piling high. School would be canceled the next day or two, we would all start thinking about Christmas. Life was really wonderful and these memories would always be so good no matter what else in life there was to face. The kids would hit the door with a big burst of cold air, snow and laughter.

Would that picture, that sound and those memories remain frozen in time forever? Or would they one day die with me?