Living down here on the Gulf Coast in Houston there aren’t many opportunities to experience snow.   In the course of my lifetime, I can count the number of times it has snowed here on 1 ½ hands.    The snow that fell to the ground did not last long and melted in a few hours so I guess you can’t really deem that as “experiencing” snow.   Yet, my entire hometown would shut down for the day because we Houstonians don’t know how to drive in those conditions.

My good friend that lives in Cleveland, Ohio would laugh at me when I told her it snowed in Houston.   She told me I didn’t really know what snow was like until I experienced it in a true snowbound city.    After hearing this taunt a couple of times, I decided to take her up on it and went to visit her in the month of February for a long weekend.    This was when I truly experienced snow for the first time.

It was beautiful to look at as she drove me to her home from the airport but when I stepped out of her car I felt like I was about to do the James Brown split.   Apparently, I had the wrong type of soles on my shoes for walking on an icy driveway.   It was so very cold and the snow started to fall really hard like one of the heavy rain days in Houston.   My girlfriend wanted to go out to introduce me to her relatives and have dinner.   I wanted to stay in her house because to me it was a blizzard outside.    She assured me it was not a blizzard but just a normal snowy day.

We drove down streets with snow heaped up like hills on the side.   I noticed it wasn’t so white all of the time and that snow could get a dirty brown color turning into slush.    At one point, we stopped by the grocery store and I saw these unusual contraptions in the store.   When I asked my girlfriend to identify it she gave me a big belly laugh.  She could not believe I did not recognize the contraption and had never seen one.   It was a snow/ice scraper for the car windshield.    I told her we did not need such a tool in Houston so how would I know about it.

I stayed a few days sliding across driveways and fearing for my well-being when we were out on the roads.    When we were in the airport for my return flight home, I was so happy to see the word Houston on the marquee because I knew I was heading to a warmer climate.  After that visit, my girlfriend and I made a pact.   She can come and visit me anytime from November to June and I would visit her anytime from June to October.

Another snow experience was a ski trip to Denver.   I only went once.   I spent the entire trip on my butt with my skis tangled up.   My friends had to help me untangle my skis several times.   Finally, I just sat on the sidelines drinking hot chocolate.   I did not even make the bunny hill.   However, I did enjoy snow tubing.   It was exhilarating!   I have never been so out of control as sliding down a hill of ice on an inner tire tube.

So, I know you are now wondering why is experiencing snow on my “Best Things in Life” list?    It is on my list because it is a beautiful natural gift from God and whatever happens in it is worth experiencing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

QUESTION(S)

Do you enjoy experiencing snow?   Why or Why Not?