The Snow & I

Fluffy, big, white ice falls from the sky and I grin, even though no one is around to see it. As the snow touches the ground and sticks, I am filled with giddy excitement. It’s Christmas day in my mind. The snow turns everything pretty, everything white and soft.

My childhood was full of beauty and sunshine and fresh fruit. In Hawaii, you grow up active: swimming, surfing, hiking, camping, paddling, everything. Sundays were beach days. We’d go to our favorite beach, Bellows. My dad would bring a shovel and dig a huge hole in the sand with a ledge for us kids to sit on. The hole would be close to the shoreline so the waves would jump over. My dad called it the beach Jacuzzi. We’d walk the beach looking for glass balls (old fishing buoys), shells and sea glass. We’d make sand castles and more, almost every weekend. At the end of the day, my dad would usually have to swim out to get me back in I loved the water so much.

I still love the water and can’t see myself living somewhere without it. I haven’t lived home in Hawaii since 2003 but I have lived near beaches on the East and West Coast. I find peace and serenity in water.

The first time I saw snow actually falling was when I was 16 and living with my aunt in Connecticut. I was so enthralled. So consumed with watching the flakes fall, that my teacher stopped a math class so I could open up a window and stick my hand out. I still remember the snow’s cold touch. One of my classmate’s said “It’s just like watching a child.” Living with my aunt and her family exposed me to the wonders of winter. We’d go sledding in the yard and neighborhood. I laughed and stayed out until my cheeks were red from cold and my fingers went numb. They took me snowboarding, I was terrible but wasn’t afraid to fall because I knew underneath me was that sweet, supple, powder.

In Hawaii, as a family we hiked, we kayaked, we bonded. We even used to go to drive in movies every few weekends before they closed it down. As a kid if I was “bored” I was encouraged to go down to the beach with my Tutu (grandmother). You’d be amazed how a beach can monopolize a kid’s time – swimming, picking seaweed. Give me a bogey board and the ocean and I’ll still spend hours waiting for the perfect wave. Even after my mother passed away, my father and I always made time for each other. We’d go on long walks together before dinner or kayak rides to the sand bar. There were some Christmas mornings we would go surfing. Despite all the amazing beauty and weather and water Hawaii has to offer you still grow up watching the same movies and TV shows as every other kid.

You grew up wanting a white Christmas, though not really understanding what that meant. You saw autumn leaves in beautiful colors being racked into piles for children to jump on. As a kid, I wanted that. You wanted to be normal and have your family be like the one on TV. While our Thanksgivings were full of love and food and friends and family, it wasn’t the least bit chilly out and fall colors were the same as summer, spring and winter – green. Hawaii doesn’t even practice daylight savings time because our days don’t drastically shorten given the season. In the “winter” it is greener in Hawaii than in the “summer” where it browns out a little. Hawaii is a constant while the mainland is fickle with its weather.

I think it’s the way it falls from the sky that makes me so animated. It floats, like something from a dream. It flies down on wind currents and unseen air pressures. It can come down in big soft clumps or delicate tiny powder-like flakes. It can be those intricate delicate snowflakes or several that form a crystal-like growth. It’s beautiful and simple and turns the landscape a different color.

Snow is something I never experienced until I was an adult. I know the science behind what makes it, and I know it causes accidents, road closures, power outages and worse. Sitting at my desk, writing this I am overcome with how lovely and yielding it is. It makes everything the same color which comforts me and in a way reminds me of home. While Hawaii is perpetually green, the snow is perpetually white. It’s a constant.