Hope Luebbe Davidson ‘25
Looking out the window just as you’ve woken up, everything is covered in a blanket of white. For a minute, the world around you is silent and still. But all your memories triggered by the sight of the snow are loud and colorful. Waking up on the first snow day is like a trip down memory lane; a smile comes to your face without you even knowing it, recalling all the fun you’ve had in previous years.
Snow holds memories—so many of them, each very different from the next. Articulated by the famous Disney snowman, “Water has memory”—and snow has memory too. Water vapor in the atmosphere freezes into tiny ice crystals. Beautiful and unique snowflakes are formed. Their intricate structure is destroyed shortly after, as millions of tiny crystals are packed into snowballs. As the snowballs multiply faster and faster, ammo is being created.
The tricky part is finding a hiding spot for the substantial number of snowballs. Making snow forts is the best way to prepare for the annual snowball fight. At first sight, snow seems soft and beautiful, but it can get quite chaotic. Fun is always had in the snow, but in your adventurous and fun-loving family, chaos is always evident. As the snowballs are packed together tighter and tighter, they are thrown harder and harder as we get older.
Once your day of fun is over, you go inside and thaw from the inside out with steaming hot chocolate. The warmth seeps into your fingertips as you cradle the mug, and your ears and face are still red from the cold outside. As you settle into the cozy indoors, the snow outside fades into the background, but the echoes of laughter and the sight of rosy, smiling faces remain vivid, transforming into cherished memories that leave behind nothing but warmth and smiles. It’s funny how snow transforms from a battleground to fun memories surrounded by white in a matter of moments.
The top layer of snow melts in the winter sunshine during the day and freezes in the chill of the night. Waking up to the driveway turned into an ice rink. Falling and slipping, but most importantly, laughing and smiling. Snow brings the coldest winters but also brings the warmest of hugs, smiles, and laughs.