Tra la la tra la la, we’ve returned from the break and have come back to the grind of college life and navigating 15 different google calendar invites in the same time slot.
Ah, I missed this.
As temperatures in the 40s begin to be felt again and we all turn on our air conditioning and fans, it is with sadness that the snow fades from campus and the green of the grass is again seen. Winter and festivities are over.
But… the cold isn’t. Because apparently, on this continent, cold persists until nearly the middle of the year. What a thought, eh? A cold February? A still-cold March? What the devil, I do say, for even with the turning of the sun to higher in the sky, I did not imagine that we would ever be done with winter. Even as snot still falls from our noses on cold nights, we say hello to a new year in a new era.
Even our sports are changing. Some seasons have already come to a close, and Bucky’s only just begun to shake the snow from his coat. Folks are still out jogging in only shorts, but now us sane folk view them with a lessened suspicion than when they had barely skivvies on while snow was falling.
And, of course, our academics. We’ve just finished up our second week of classes, and the year already feels like it’s dragged on for too long. Already swamped with commitments, activities and the unending stream of work that’s only begun to pile up, this new year is set to put even more gray into our hair. It’s a tiring prospect that has only begun to be felt, but with the fatigue of last semester still felt by many, even first years such as myself are questioning how close the end is.
On the plus side, snow! I, myself, only saw it for the first time this past semester, and even though much of it is already done for the year, it was still a magical experience to see those first flakes fall at three in the morning. Traipsing through the snow that night, hearing the pops beneath my boots for the first time, I suppose I finally truly realized that the soft white blanket across the land was real, not just in the realm of fantasy books and romance films.
Winter has genuinely been one of the best experiences of my life. To those of you who have never lived somewhere where the seasons are wet and dry, rather than spring, summer, autumn and winter, I ask this of you: never cease to appreciate how amazing it is to be always surrounded by such change. The ability to see the very world around you change in massive ways while beautiful events such as snowfall occur is something that a younger me would have thought impossible. Yes, it is sometimes a pain in the rear to put on two coats to take your garbage out at midnight. Yes, I do hate how the walkway to the ELC becomes so slippery after the snow has been cleared off of it and you’re at a perpetual risk of sliding down into the intersection. But in spite of it all? Winter is amazing. It is amazing to experience it, and it is undoubtedly amazing to feel such a chill in the air, even this far after its pinnacle.
I love my life. Even though it has struggles, doubtless. In spite of… no, because of those struggles, I feel like I’m genuinely living my life. My only regrets are that I lack the time to do every single thing possible. And sleep more, but six hours is enough, right?
Eh, who cares? Welcome back everybody!