Walking in a Winter Wonderland

It isn’t often that it snows on the damp coast but when it does, I absolutely love it.

Okay, logistics of driving and dealing with buffoons without snow tires aside, snow turns the dark grey of winter into something far more bearable. 

Snow Adds Brightness

Perhaps it’s just the extra light that reflects off the snow that makes everything brighter but it certainly helps the winter sad mood.

On the damp coast, we’re notorious for racing about like chickens with our heads cut off, even those of us who don’t want to.  So when it snows on the coast it sends panic through the populace causing everything to shut down for a while.  It’s the wet, sticky type of snow that isn’t particularly nice to drive around in but the effect is that the entire town becomes more peaceful.  Generally people stay home until the snow has melted so they are forced to be quiet for a while and just take the foot off the gas.

Hidden Life in the Snow

But what I like the most about the snow is that I get to see the footprints of all the creatures that frequent my yard.  I know there is a family of raccoons and at least one skunk.  Then there’s the black squirrel and the grey squirrel, plus cats, crows, seagulls, chickadees, sparrows and the occasional woodpecker.  It’s wonderful to go out in the yard and try to figure out which creature went where.  I love knowing there’s a secret life going on in my garden that I only rarely get a glimpse of.

Even as I type this, the snow is melting but, for now, the world is a winter wonderland.