frozen hair

On Thursday 17th December, I stayed in the college library a little bit longer than planned. I came out to find, to my surprise, that “Snow had fallen, snow on snow, snow on snow”. The circular lawn was blanketed and glistening. There was a touch of exhilaration as I left the college and began the journey home. So much snow had fallen that, as I walked, I made footprints in the snow, with inches of snow remaining beneath the footprint.

It was hard to see where the kerb turned into the road, as the edge was buried in a white flurry. As I turned and continued onwards, I was now walking into a blizzard, wind lashing my face with stinging snow. My glasses became steamed up and I didn’t have windscreen wipers to clear them. It was painful to keep going, so I staggered forward ten steps at a time, before turning my back to the snow for a while to regain my energy.



Turning into the park, I couldn’t see the path, but could see a blob of light marking the bridge which on most days is not far away. I journeyed towards the light, thinking of Scott of the Antarctic.

My walk home having taken at least twice as long as usual, my appearance on my arrival alarmed my housemate’s friend. It was time to change my clothes, get a warm drink and pick the lumps of ice out of my hair.



John Ruskin would have looked on the bright side. He said, “Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating; there is really no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather.”

I also went for a walk in the snow with my family on Christmas day, but this was more friendly snow. Thankfully I was given some gloves, a scarf and an umbrella for Christmas.