Winter Wisdom

The snowstorm had subsided, leaving behind a thick, glistening carpet of white. Aunt Maria trudged alongside Joanna, her boots sinking deep with every step. “Ugh! My leg! Stupid snow,” Aunt Maria exclaimed, her voice echoing in the silent expanse. Her leg had got wedged in the deep snow.

She had visited her niece, Joanna, who lived in Yakutsk, one of the coldest places on earth.

“What happened Aunt Maria?" Joanna asked. “ Umph… nothing. My leg got stuck” Aunt Maria said as she bent down and scraped the snow away from her feet harshly. The harder she scraped and pushed the snow hard, the quicker the snow rolled back. Joanna was watching this quietly. She bent down and slowly slid the snow away from Aunt Maria’s leg. This time, the snow did not come rolling back. “Wow! You sure do know how to deal with this stubborn snow!” Aunt Maria exclaimed. Joanna chuckled. “You just need to be kind to the nature!” She said. “Kind” Aunt Maria grunted. 

The two finally made it back to the cozy wooden house, their boots leaving a trail of snow behind them. Joanna headed to the kitchen to prepare something warm, while Aunt Maria explored the unfamiliar surroundings. Moments later, Aunt Maria’s voice rang out from the hall, “Joanna! Where is the water? The tap isn’t working!” Joanna dashed in, puzzled.

“Oh! Just a second, I will heat the ice that I harvested from the lake…” she said. 

“What? Ice? Harvest? Lake?” Aunt Maria sputtered, her eyes wide with disbelief. “You mean you don’t just turn the tap on for water? How on earth do you live like this?”. “You must be joking” she continued, as she raised an eyebrow quizzically. “No, Aunt Maria.. sometimes the water gets frozen in the pipe, so you don't get water when you turn the tap on…” Joanna explained, as she pushed open a door and walked into a room. Aunt Maria looked around and she saw there were huge cubes of ice. “Now, don't tell me I will have to lick it to drink water,” she said sarcastically. “No!” Joanna chuckled. She picked one ice cube and trudged to the kitchen. She plopped the ice cube into a barrel and lit the wood beneath it. “Aunt Maria, it will take some time to heat… till then you can do something else…” Joanna told Aunt Maria. “Oh…ok. Where I live, all you have to do is turn on the tap and the water flows” Aunt Maria told Joanna. Joanna chuckled and said “Well, that would save the water from getting wasted.. right? No one is going to waste the water they get after melting an ice cube for half an hour!” They both waited for the water to heat up. After finishing, Joanna walked over to the kitchen. “Aunt Mariaaaa!! The food is ready!” Joanna yelled. Aunt Maria hurried over to the table. “Why? Chicken lollipops again? We had them last Tuesday!” She grumbled as she pulled a chair. “There is no food in here… how do you manage??” She continued. Joanna smiled politely and said, “Aunt Maria, that's the only food you get here… there is no alternative. It's too cold and snowy to grow anything” Aunt Maria glanced outside. It was snowing. “I hate this winter.. how terrible can this weather be? Water as ice, the same food for ages.. and, also feet stuck till knee length in snow, looking at the snow outside now. How can you exist here?” Aunt Maria said frustrated, banging her fork on the table. “Aunt Maria, the weather is as it is, and there is a solution for every problem. You need to look at the good side. It is just the weather and your attitude towards it” Joanna finished, Leaving Aunt Maria stunned.

She turned on the radio. A song played-

The winter arrives with a shower of snow,

Sending first its majestic icy blow.

It's the season of fur coats, mittens and boots,

Where snow lies in abundance like an icy loot.

The snow lays softly like a huge blanket on the floor,

It's the time when animals prepare for their long snore.

All the trees are Christmas-ready,

It's the greatest gift Santa gave me.

Hot chocolate and soups are so hot,

Oh! What surprises has winter got!

Aunt Maria stared out at the delicate snowfall, her frustration melting away like frost on a sunny morning. “All this time, I’ve been so focused on the inconveniences that I forgot to see the magic of winter,” she thought, a soft smile curling her lips. Joanna caught her gaze, her own smile mirroring Aunt Maria’s newfound appreciation.

~ Aabha