Every year around this time a similar phenomenon happens at Middlebury. While we know it is coming, it inevitably always is a slight surprise: it gets cold.

The other morning I woke up and it was 7 degrees. Granted, this is particularly cold for November, but not unheard of. I happened to be driving up to Burlington that day when I passed a local middle school. They had one of the those signs that displays the name of the school, and space to post various announcements in change-able letters. Instead of the usual notifications like dates for Thanksgiving break or congratulations to the district choir champions, this sign said just one simple phrase: Pray for Snow!

Oftentimes when people are visiting Middlebury, particularly those from warmer climates, the weather causes them a lot of anxiety. It does indeed get very cold here, but unlike a lot of places that get equally cold, the winter brings excitement in Vermont in a way it does in few other places. I am from Philadelphia. In Philly it gets pretty much just as cold and snows some, but most people consider the cold a drag and the snow a headache. In Vermont, the cold is exciting because it means snow is not far behind.

While I still don’t identify as someone who loves the cold, when I am in Vermont I find myself praying for snow a little bit too.