Snow Patrol

SNOW DAY

I got up early so I could be the first one to the snow today. To get out before the men come with their shovels and clear the walks. Before there are footprints crossing everywhere and you can't pick which path to follow.

I wasn't the very first one out. Someone was waiting at the bus stop when I went outside. The bus was running, the roads were plowed. One set of tire tracks led into the parking lot. I followed it as long as I could. I didn't want to break more snow than I had to. Reaching the edge of the parking lot, though, I had to create my own path.

Walking on snow that hasn't been walked on yet is like discovering a new world. You know, without a doubt, that no living thing has been there recently. The snow was still falling, hard flakes driven by the wind that stung my face when they hit. The snow held under my feet, not leaving me to sink to the ground. I watched it blow off the roof of the Book Center as I walked toward the garden. The apple trees there are my favorite on campus, all gnarled and twisted. The pond was covered, marked only by the reeds and rocks poking from the snow, otherwise indistinguishable from the ground around it.

I didn't walk very far into the garden. I hate breaking too much snow. I want to leave things undisturbed, let others enjoy them too. I retraced my steps back, only stepping where I had already left footprints. By now, the wind was full in my face and the snow was starting to blind me. The walk home seemed longer than it ever had before.

When I got back to Dakin, the crews were starting to shovel the stoop.