Father Winter arrives early with cold, snow and a reminder of winter’s power

Father Winter made an early entrance this year. We have had very cold temperatures and snow. That does not usually arrive until later in December or January. If Father Winter was trying to get our attention, he succeeded.

Perhaps we have all gotten acclimated to the effects of global warming. GW, as we shall call it, is very appreciated in the winter but not so much during the summer months. Father Winter would really appreciate not having GW interfering with his winter plans.

Snow and ice storms are two of Father Winter’s favorite things. He knows how the children love to go out and play in the snow, building snow figures, sliding down hills on their sleds and pelting each other with snowballs. Ice storms aren’t so popular. Kids have no school and get to stay at home; unfortunately, so do their parents because the roads are sheets of ice. Parents tend to have their children engage in cleaning their rooms, studying for tests at school, when those children would much rather go outside and get covered in snow, building snowmen and throwing snowballs.

Houses in general prefer a little GW during the winter months. Too much snow and ice makes houses very uncomfortable. However, the right kind of snow acts as a blanket on house roofs.

Once, many years ago, we lived in a big, old house whose roof was rather steep. That year, the day following, a snowstorm got warmer and warmer as the day progressed. Slowly, that roof snow blanket began to slide down the roof and drop great blankets of snow all around the house. The snow blankets covered the walks, most of the driveway, and both the front porch steps and the back porch steps. For two days we were prisoners in our own house. Finally, Dad was able to get out and clear the snow from the front steps, but it took almost another day to clear the driveway enough so he could get the car out.

Though we kids loved playing in the snow, being trapped inside our house was not fun. I think that was about the time I began to dread winter. I still liked to play in the snow but less and less as I got older. A year or two later, our family moved into a warmer state, and playing in the snow was a memory. Our poor, old house was stuck on her foundation and couldn’t move with us. I think of her often when Father Winter arrives and hope she is safe and snow-free.

Laura Moore can be emailed at lehmoore1@gmail.com.