Walking home from the library this weekend I looked around and said out loud, “There is something missing,” without missing a beat my suitemate said, “The leaves, we’re missing the leaves.” Ah yes, the leaves. Normally walking around we always have some visual obstruction. Whether it is the plush green leaves or the lightly layered snow on the bare tree branches, weather transitions here at Middlebury are blunt. It’s warm and then it’s cold. Yet, this year Mother Nature has been playing with our emotions and Old Man winter has been a uncharacteristically absent. (Something I honestly do not mind.) As Middkidd you know two things: (a) You are either cold or (b) Surprised you are not as cold as you thought you would be.

My freshman year at Middlebury was a doozy. We had freeze warnings like it was no one’s business. And it was always worded so nicely. If I recall correctly they went a little something like this *ahem*

“Please minimize time spent outdoors as a freeze warning is in effect.  The temperature is 2 below, but the wind chill makes it feel like -20.”

Just reading that makes  me cold. Thinking about to my fist freshman winter, there was snow, there was ice and there were plenty of falls. 

Sophomore year I prepared for the worst, increasing my fleece arsenal, gloves, hats and prayers. And we got 1 big snowstorm.  Technically we had two. The first was the day before we were supposed to return to campus, so I will not count it. (Although my friends and I had an adventure seeing as our 5 hour drive turned into a 36 hours ordeal…but that is a story for another day.) But the 1 big storm we had (in March or April) only knocked out power for 3 hours, not enough to cancel class, but just enough to make you bitter you had to walk in it. Overall it was a pretty easy winter. Nice enough where some days I could keep my window open and let the sun shine into my room.

Junior year hmmm…I think people in Antarctica were colder than usual last winter. I spent my Fall in Atlanta, Georgia at Spelman College so I had a real transitional season. A true Fall. With brisk winds, a light jacket and gradual shift to the cold. Coming back to Middlebury in January was a complete slap in the face. It seemed like every day it was snowing. I mean it was as if Old Man Winter’s snow blower was stuck in the “On” position. I would wake up and there was a new level of precipitation to battle with. But I made it.

Yet this year, no one knows. It was uncharacteristically warm in September. We have had a quick wintry mix, where everything was evaporated by noon, but that has been it for snow. I am weary of being too optimistic as at any time we could just be hit with freezing rain, but I will say this. Whatever the season brings I will embrace it. As this will be my last year of first snows in the Green Mountain state.