Day 2160 Snow Day

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The Big Dig… New England Style

I woke up early (shocking, I know), eager to see how much snow had fallen overnight. When I went to open the front door, the snow was so high it had completely covered it, I had to push the snow back just to get the door open. We must have gotten at least a foot of snow: beautiful, fluffy white powder, not yet yucked up by sleet, rain, or footprints. Occasionally, a plow would drive by, but otherwise even the road was untouched.

I threw on my snow pants and winter gear to get outside, check on my chickens, and clear a path to their coop...first things first! I shoveled a long path to the coop and around back to where I gather their eggs. The chickens were huddled inside the warmth of their inner sanctum, most of them uninterested in venturing out and risking a step into the snow. A couple of white hens didn’t seem to notice the snow at all and had the run to themselves.

I brought them breakfast, warm oatmeal mixed with chicken feed, and carried it inside where the hens were happiest. Once they were all set, I headed up front to shovel the walk, occasionally losing a leg up to my thigh in snowdrifts. I cleared a pathway from the front door to the sidewalk, then stopped and figured I’d leave some of the fun for Tim, who was still sound asleep.

I waited for him to wake up, checking on him every half hour, amazed that he could still be sleeping, even the smell of bacon cooking didn’t wake him! I had already seen the sunrise and had a full morning of living, so by the time he finally stumbled downstairs at 10:00, I was ready for lunch.

He took his morning slow, sipping coffee, and put off shoveling for so long that by the time he was almost ready to head outside, a neighbor had finished our sidewalk with his snowblower. By then, I was on another mission and decided it was a good day to clean our bedroom and maybe rearrange the furniture. Tim protested, telling me it would be okay if I did nothing… has he met me? He also accused me of trying to ruin his day, so I agreed to clean the room and not ask for help rearranging, saving that fun for another day.

We had so much food left over from my storm-prep meals that we continued to eat like royalty, and the bonus day off made us both feel incredibly lucky. By the time we went to bed, it was snowing again, and I opened our bedroom window to listen to the peaceful quiet of it all. There’s nothing quite like the hush of fresh snow and the crisp, cool air. Feeling that cool air and listening to the quiet of the snow makes winter feel magical, and reminds me why I love New England....and even a snowstorm now and then. 

“Snow falling soundlessly in the middle of the night will always fill my heart with sweet clarity.” ~ Novala Takemoto