Exactly one month ago, as we were getting ready to stuff those ballot boxes, I was staring out my window into the early morning darkness, and I saw those four beautiful deer grazing on the boulevard in Winnipeg. Sorry to tell Bambi and his pals that the grass is now buried under several centimetres of snow. We probably won’t see much of it again until some time in March.
I have lived on the prairies all my life, and I still marvel at the change of seasons. Yes, snow and ice are ‘inconvenient’. Driving and walking become a lot more difficult. It’s also very expensive clearing away the white stuff, and trying to maintain our infrastucture. Two winters ago, the deep freeze arrived not much after Halloween, and it seemed like it would never leave. In Winnipeg, as well as Regina and Saskatoon, hundreds of folks had frozen water pipes.
Can you blame people for wanting to escape to the sunny south if they can afford it? Those of us who stay behind most of the time like to think that snowbirds don’t know what they’re missing. In fact they do, because if they grew up on the prairies they will surely remember frostbitten ears while skating on an outdoor rink, or waiting for a bus before you had that driver’s license.
This year, the snow did not arrive until a full week after Remembrance Day. Some of the diehards played one of their latest games of golf ever, in shirtsleeves! Those who see the glass as half empty were no doubt saying “We’ll pay for this” rather than simply enjoying the beautiful autumn.
The stores are very happy with the white blanket on the ground. With no snow, it’s hard to even think about Christmas. I guess it’s time to put away my sandals for a few months, and locate that scraper brush.
Hey, the joy of spring will be here before you know it.
I’m Roger Currie
Photo by Benjamin Hollis
