WINTER WONDERLAND!

You know, you go away for a lousy 27 years, and things change - including your memory. I was born and raised in the beautiful mitten state and lived there until I was 31. Of course I have returned to Michigan many times, but very seldom in winter- in fact, if I remember correctly, I have returned in winter only twice since the big move South in 1980. So this trip to visit my dear old dad has been an amazing kick-start to my memory.

I cannot remember that last time I went to bed and woke up to five inches of sparkling white snow on the ground but that is exactly what happened here. I felt like a kid again, and seriously considered plopping down to make a snow angel until I realized that I would probably not be able to get up again and Dad wouldn’t be able to help me. I can see the headlines now “Fat fool from Tennessee found spread-eagled in the snow”. News at 11.

Wish my granddaughters were here. They have never seen snow like this. All the trees are groaning under the load, and the tiny prints of birds and small animals break the pristine blanket at irregular intervals. Tuesday Dad and I went out for a drive. The sun was bright, the snow on the trees had started to melt ever so slightly but just enough to catch and fragment the sunlight until the trees looked like they were made of crystal and studded with diamonds. I had forgotten that, aside from being cold, wet, and dangerous, winter in Michigan is also breathtakingly beautiful.

We got another inch or so of the white stuff last night, just a soft dusting by Michigan standards but enough to close the schools in my little hometown in Tennessee. I am off to buy proper boots with my baby sister today. Since I seldom need them at home, I have only one pair more appropriate for rain than sleet and snow. The Michiganians have been sneering at my boots, which are heeled and will certainly kill me if I wear them outside the house. Or so they say. What I will do with those proper boots when I return to Tullahoma is beyond me. Maybe I will have them bronzed to commemorate my winter visit of 2007. Imagine the size the mantle that would be required to display those babies.

Sissie’s here, I’m off! Damn, I wish I had a sled!