Patsy's forsythia pops out for a mid-winter visit.

My daffodils have pushed their shoots through the mulch. The neighbor's are in full bloom. Bright yellow flowers are appearing on the forsythia in my side yard.

Afternoon temps are as likely to be in the sixties as the forties. It seems that spring has prematurely sprung.

I should be happy, but...what happened to the snow? Is it possible that we won't get even a flake this year? Heck, inclement weather is the most interesting thing that happens in the boring months of  January and February,

To me, a winter without snow is well... it's just not a real winter. In Eastern North Carolina, snow means a holiday for a lot of folks.

Especially those of us in the business of education. True, we know we'll have to make up the missed time, but when the announcement is made that there will be no school for the day, we somehow feel pretty lucky. 

So I miss the students eagerly, anxiously looking out the window on a bitterly cold, steel-gray sky day, watching for the first flakes.

I miss someone saying, “Mrs. Pridgen, it's snowing!” and everyone sitting up straight, anticipating the message that we all are dismissed for the day.

I miss the crazy grocery store trips for milk and bread. I want to see the neighborhood kids (and some adults too!) using makeshift sleds to fly down the hilly street in front of our house. I want a day at home to cook chili, crank up the gas logs, and climb on the sofa with a good book.

Oh yeah, I know there's a price for all the fun that snow brings. I know it's not even fun for many people whose jobs don't allow them the luxury of staying home on a snow day. It's true that snow means higher utility bills, cabin fever for parents, bang-ups on the highway for those who have to get out.

But in the words of one of my favorite poets, Robert Frost, I want to watch the woods “fill up with snow.”

Maybe just once this season?