Again, the trees have shed their leaves and “are standing in a naked row,” (Joni Mitchell), a harbinger of what is yet to come: snow! Some years we luck out in New Hampshire and have snow for Christmas. Sometimes, we even have snow in November, so it could be arriving any time now. Snow is so beautiful. I used to love to do cross-country skiing. It is easier to do so on groomed paths rather than, say, on the fields of the old farm where I once lived.
The old-timers always claimed that houses were warmed after the first hard snow, the snow providing a natural effect of insulation.
Around here, the beautiful snow is in my backyard, and eventually, due to traffic, the utterly yucky, brown snow is by the street. I can’t help but wonder how pleasant it used to be on this wide, Elm-lined street, to see horse and carriage go by, and in the winter, horse and sleigh. I take interest in the fact that the Honorable Daniel Webster used to ride past my home to reach his residence north of here. There is a photo of his conveyance in Ruth Finley’s book about The Lady of Godey’s.
For information about Mrs. Hale, the Mother of the American Thanksgiving, please see: Sarah Josepha Hale.
One had to watch the weather and be careful which vehicle to choose. The famous Sarah Josepha Buell Hale’s husband, David, got caught in a sudden snowstorm in the next town over from where they lived in Newport, NH. Having been very chilled, he became so ill, he died of pneumonia. That disease of the lungs is caused by a bacterial infection, although I believe there is also a counterpart known as viral pneumonia.
Researchers today have experimented to see if there is a connection between becoming very cold and wet and getting sick. If I remember correctly, they did not see a link, in clinical studies. However, sometimes there is much more to old “wive’s tales,” than one might imagine. The fact remains that the man was chilled, and before anyone could say, “Jack, Sprat,” he was dead.
Back to snow … Whether or not we have snow is pretty inconsequential for most local people, most of whom are not thrilled about driving in it or shoveling it. Those who own ski resorts and those who like to ski or snowboard are the folks who are ecstatic at the first hint of a large snowstorm. New Hampshire’s economy is really stricken in years when we have little or no snow. Now, however, they make man-made snow, and that helps, but only to a certain extent.
Our main concern is always in having a “White Christmas.” There is something totally magical about snow and snowflakes. Whether one crochets snowflakes or re-creates their patterns on a quilt, we just love their symmetry and the fact that they all appear to be different in construction. In March, during maple sugaring time, it is a New England custom to pour maple syrup on the snow and eat it.
Wishing you “white” in the near future. If you live in the desert, you have our sympathies, but, like Bing Crosby, you can always dream of snow.
Patricia Cummings
