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I dread winters. I hate the cold weather. I hate the lethargy
that sets in with the onset of winter. I hate the darkness that
falls at 5 p.m. I find it just too depressing, and every time I
complain about winters, someone sweetly points out to me that I
live in Houston, where winters are really, really mild. In fact,
Houston never receives snow! But in spite of all that I grudge
and complain and drag myself through the 2-3 months of cold
weather Houston experiences.
This winter has been no exception. It is cold and I complain.
It has fallen into a pattern now. I dream about the hot summer
days and miss the Chennai winters. Mild and humid! I remember
the early morning ‘pani’ in winters in India. Before I step out
to decorate our doorstep with a nice colour kolam in the
Marghazhi masam, my family would ensure that I wore a sweater
and tied a woolen scarf around my head covering my ears. And
going out in winter meant wearing bulky sweaters and scarves to
keep warm and to prevent falling sick.
As I sit and write this from Houston, it is 6.45 a.m. and the
mercury is hovering around 33 Fahrenheit that is around 2
degrees Celsius. But the day still goes on. I turn on the news
hoping they have declared a holiday as they often do under
extreme weather conditions in India. I wish for the warm summer
sun and the mild breeze. I know this morning I’ll complain to my
husband and brother about this bad weather and they’ll laugh at
me.
Is it only me? The winter weather-hater? I wear my bulky
layers, sweaters, jackets, gloves and shoes and still feel cold
and freezing! And with the cold weather everything around me
dulls down, it is depressing and I just cannot wait for spring.
Another month of freezing cold weather before the warm days of
spring are here to put a spring in my step. To bring back the
leaves, to bring back the birds, the flowers, the laughter and
in short, life!
As I start my countdown for spring I dream about spring and
the memories I’ll make. I think about the winter so far. In
spite of all my grumblings I have such wonderful memories of
precious moments spent with my brother this winter that warm me
up. And hope everyone created such special memories to treasure
for life! Memories and moments with family that can warm you up
on the coldest of days!
And I am keeping my fingers and toes crossed hoping that the
winter will move away soon giving way to sunshine!
- V
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