Welcome back, everyone! I hope that you’re welcoming the new year with a positive mindset, an optimistic plan for achieving your goals, and the will to withstand another two long months of winter. Having now adjusted to the weather, I’ve been reflecting back to a time in our childhoods when winter was not a source of dread, but a joyful and enthralling time. No matter what neighborhood we grew up in, we likely shared similar experiences and can reminisce about nostalgic memories from the childhoods we spent in winter wonderlands.
When I conjure an image of my childhood friends in the wintertime, I see frozen snot forming around noses and white snowflakes sticking to eyelashes. We all know too well that unique sensation of feeling the snot in your nose freeze up and become sticky and irritable against the cold wind. We wiggled our little noses and wiped them with our wool mittens, but soon, after making little to no progress, we accepted that frozen snot was just a discomfort that we would endure until we went back indoors. On a happier note, what was slightly more idyllic were the snowflakes landing perfectly on our eyelashes and adding a little sparkle to our line of vision. I would pick snowflakes off my friends’ eyelashes and urge them to make wishes before they quickly melted in between by fingertips.
I can remember distinctly standing at the bus stop with my siblings on a cold grey winter morning and pretending to hold an invisible cigarette, smoking from its tip and blowing out puffs of cold air resembling smoke. Every child I knew would do this. We were so sweetly innocent but still somehow…quite rebellious. What could elicit the idea of a classic “Canadian childhood” more than the perfect treat of hot chocolate with marshmallows to help thaw out your cold body after hours of playing outside? We’d wobble inside with our heavy snow pants and socks dampened with snow, strip down our many layers from head to foot, and run for the kitchen. Hot cocoa without marshmallows is satisfactory, but with marshmallows…it is heaven.
Recess during the winter months was a new ballgame. It was all about competition and teamwork. The school field could become a place for Winter Olympics training, genius engineering feats, and a brutal battlefield of snowballs flying through the air. Children were always engaging in competitions on the school field to see who could build the mightiest fort or who could slide the furthest distance on the ice without wiping out. We would split into teams to see who could work together to roll the biggest snowball and construct the most impressive snowman. It was a time of fierce survival training and endless fun.
Last, but certainly not least, there was something so thrilling and blissful about the memory of our parents sneaking into our room in the early hours of the morning and announcing, “It’s a snow day!” Our prayers were answered. Our dreams manifested into a reality. We could sleep in and then we had the entire day at our disposal to rest, eat, play and watch cartoons as we saw fit. The sense of freedom was palpable. Yes, our parents would often employ us to shovel the driveway or clean the dishes, but we didn’t really mind because it was a snow day, life was swell, and we had all of the time in the world…