February 7, 2015 - 13:42
I left my apartment with a determined stride, patches of snow crunching under my rain boots, cigarette in hand. I paused in the road, the place where my hair gets caught in the early morning sunlight, to slowly close my lips around the filter and pull at the deep orange embers. This cold winter morning seemed oddly warm, maybe because the sunlight and sky were saturated hues of yellow and blue--tempting me to hope for spring.
Maybe this was the reason I thought walking the nature trail to my site was a good idea. While walking through the woods, I was so distracted by the birds chirping above my head that I forgot to look down at me feet. I sudden jolt of my stomach and the loss of friction between my feet and the ground made me look down. The entire trail, for as far as I could see, was covered in a thick layer of ice. Not wanting to ice skate my way over to my four stepping stones, I decided to walk the less-scenic route through the campus.
Barclay Beach, however, presented a new obstacle. It was like a downhill icy ski slope. So I proceeded to skate across, in my rain boots, slowly shuffling my feet and catching my balance until I reached the bench before the stepping stones. I decided that was the perfect place to take a break and catch my breath. I was so mad that I decided to choose a site surrounded by a mote of ice, and so far from my warm bed. But, begrudgingly, I had to admit it was beautiful. Free from the sounds of my own footsteps, I was able to close my eyes and listen to the sound of wind blowing through the trees. I let the cold air cleanse my face. The rising sun was reflected in the ice to my right, creating a water-y glint on it’s surface. All I could hope is that it will melt soon.