November Snow Dusting

November Snow Dusting
by Marilyn Mackenzie



For one who thrives in a world of sunny skies, in high temperatures and air conditioning, spending Thanksgiving in Michigan was, at best uncomfortable.

I wondered if living in Florida during the first year of my life had made me long for a warmer clime. I certainly cannot remember those sunny days in Florida as an infant, but the family picture album tells the story well. Baby Marilyn smiled brightly underneath her huge sunbonnet.

I lived most of my childhood in Pennsylvania, where winter winds blew and snow was a familiar winter sight. But I never enjoyed the cold weather. I remember being bundled up as a 3-year-old, dressed in a snowsuit and mittens, and being pushed out the door to play. Parents were certain that outdoor play was healthy. I just wondered why my mother wanted to torture me so.

Holiday movies all show families building snowmen together. Snowmen were absent in our family picture albums. Building them would have taken more time in the cold than I was willing to spend.

Sleds hung on the walls of our garage, but I don’t remember using them much. I was a senior in high school before I ever dared go tobogganing with friends. As I trudged back up the park hill, my 3-year-old self flashed through my mind, the one dressed in the snowsuit. At 17, though, I wondered why I was torturing myself in this way. I truly hated winter cold, ice and snow.

These thoughts came to mind as I sat in my parents’ home after Thanksgiving, trapped inside once more by winter’s chill and the snow dusting the ground. It was pretty, I have to admit. The yard looked like it should have graced the front of a Christmas card. As long as I didn’t have to work or play in the snow, I could appreciate its beauty.

November snow dusted the ground and clung to the trees. Standing by the window, inside the warm house, with a cup of coffee to warm my hands, the white outdoor painting was, indeed, beautiful. Perhaps I needed the reminder of why my Texas world of sunshine and warmth was one I embraced and enjoyed.