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Sunday, April 06, 2008

On Snowing All Day

It's been snowing all day, on and off. The Phantom's right. You can tell it's snowing even before you wake up. Just open your ears to the muffled sounds then your eyes to the whiter than usual glare coming through the curtains, and you know it's snowing. The snow bounces light right through the windows into every corner of the rooms. The birds huddle together in the hedges and trees, urging me to feed them last night's bread ends. Later in the morning they are followed into the gardens by children sliding about bare headed and gloveless. A car or two passes. Lunch is prepared. And still the snow comes, on and off, but not really sticking.
It hasn't really snowed properly, enough for drifts halfway up the house walls, since the children were at primary school. Then we'd be out making huge snowmen, leaping off the garden benches into enormous snowdrifts, and finally making snow angels. Sometimes even the village school would close, and parents would be summonsed from work at lunchtime to collect their over-excited children. Of course no-one minded, we all joined in with the mock-anxiety of it all. Should I try and get to the butcher's for stewing beef just in case we get snowed in? Have I enough milk and bread? Shall I get the barbeque out just in case we get a power cut, and where are those blasted candles? You only need to be snowed in and cut off once, with young children, to know that the panacea for all ills and fears is a well stocked pantry, a beef stew on the go and lots of candles. And snow angels, of course.

4 comments:

Cottage Smallholder said...

What an enchanting post. I'd love to make snaow angels with Danny and the Min Pins. We will when we have the chance.

Meanwhile the thought of being snowed in tomorrow fills me with glee. A day off to snooze by the fire... Unlikely though.

Jan said...

I love your photographs.

Sara at Come Away With Me said...

Greetings, Amalee, from Southern California. Thank you for stopping by my blog and commenting! And I am so pleased to meet another Elizabeth Goudge fan! And yes, I do love that bedroom....it would need a bigger door for me however!

I enjoyed your descriptions of the snow....snow is not something I have much experience with, living where I do. In my entire 57 years, I've only seen it actually snow twice! So, I did not know you could tell, before you open the blinds in the morning, just by the light in the room, that it had snowed! I'd like to experience that someday.

And then I see below on the page, the peach colored alstroemeria that I used in my wedding bouquet once upon a time!

It's been a delight to visit your blog.

Sara

Lavinia said...

I hope all the snow is gone by now!