10. Winter Tales

An owl softly fluttered into his tree late in the summer, this was a sign of the wonderful season to come. Two of my favorite seasons are winter and fall. They bring joy to me and everything and everyone around me.
Days went by until my life came to the first day of October. That means that my life has turned from hot, sticky days for cool, leaf-raking days. Halloween was close at hand, well at least at the end of the month. After many days of thought I’ve decided to be a zombie bride for Halloween.

The Ice Bed

When you think of cozy, you think warm, but I always think cold. The reason is that I am in love with the snow, and cold like you probably are with your home. The difference is, you can't sleep under a house. This is the story of the first time I saw snow in large amounts. I am Graham, and I was in third grade.

Bitter yet graceful sons of winter, nearly ubiquitous interludes of warmth. Your population seemingly dwarfs that of any in the history of precipitation. Your height is apparent, unlike your shy cousins, escaping into the ground. I salute you, great vast nation of flakes. You once covered the world, little land remains undiscovered by you. Billions of unique individuals; fighting for the same cause, no matter what country you overthrow. An immortal contender to Genghis Khan, conqueror of all, disregarded out of sheer jealousness.

The Perfect Storm
From where I lie
I look at the sky
But all I see is white
Within the freeze
Only 12 degrees
The snow is such a sight

It may be reckless
And may make a mess
But we all still love it so
It’s what makes a storm
And deviates the norm
Whenever the wind blows

White perfections fall
Each different from them all
Through the air they uniquely blow
Oh how I love
What comes from above
The perfect storm of snow

Snow flakes &
Flakes of snow
One in the same
Both blamed by name

Open game
They drift lame
Suppressed in shame
Loved in vain

Ice clings to the
branches and turns
them to
delicate glass
wind chimes
hanging in the sun.

Snow covers the
ground and sparkles
in a
fierce beauty,
diamonds scattered
with white light.

Trees offer a
shield from the
cold and snow
with their
weighed–down arms
like a secret hideaway.

Wind races across
the black and white
countryside and
pushes into every
pore of me with
its cold, chilling breath.

Why I like winter

By Jonathan Carter
Browns River Middle School, Grade 5

I like winter because you can play in the snow non-stop. I’m always out building something with snow. Every year I have a plan on what I am going to build and how I will build it. My brothers and I build and have snowball fights. I enjoy playing when I go out; I’m not kidding. I am out there for two hours or more! I love to cream my siblings with snowballs. Of course then I go in for hot chocolate like anyone else.

Winter Story

By Omeed Fallahi
Union Elementary School, Grade 4

Stumped

By Angus Frasen
Union Elementary School, Grade 4

It was a pretty sunny day and I had absolutely nothing to do so I went outside to continue my snow fort. I wasn't getting very far so I was about to go back inside when my dad came outside and asked if I wanted to go to Hubbard Park to sled. I said, "Sure."

Snowflakes

By Brianna Boucher
Franklin School, Grade 6

Snowflakes fall from heavenly lands
Majestic and beautiful like soft white sand
A blanket of wonder glitters in the light
Slowly falling on a Christmas night
Pure beauty coming down
Giving cheerfulness to the cold dark ground
Each and every one like a shooting start
Peacefulness, wonderfulness spread so far
Until earth is covered in a layer of white
So quiet and silent, what a beautiful sight

Skiing

HUNTING FOR OUR CHRISTMAS TREE

Every year my family goes to get a Christmas tree. We sled down a hill into a big field of Christmas trees. It is really fun and it smells like beautiful Balsams. Then we go racing up a hill, it is fun, and then we wait for mom and dad. Then someone goes in the sled and then we take turns. It’s very fun getting a Christmas tree. Once we get a Christmas tree, we go back and get a free hot chocolate, and hot cider. It is very nice.

White;
Sparkling;
Soft;
That is what you see
When you look at the snow
That is falling from the sky;
Like confetti at a celebration.
Instead it pelts your skin;
Hard;
Jarring;
Figid;
Not soft in the least.

Snow is two-faced.
As are so many people I know.
Lovely and soft to look at,
But before you know it you are in
The direct line of fire
And you are being pelted
Until the sting of each hit
Is gone.
So numb it makes me;
So purple and so numb.
Until all that is left is the thought of warmth
And the needless constant nagging of sleep.

This is what I think as I sit in class,
Staring out the window
To the white,
Delicate looking world.
The trees are coated with white
And the plow trucks cannot keep up
As the snow dumps from the sky.

I cannot tell what kind of snow it is.
Is it the two-faced sort of snow?
The snow that hurts like daggers
In your skin?
Or the kind that is just as soft as it looks,
Despite the cold?

There is no way to tell.
You just have to take a chance
And find out.

But I will have to face the snow,
Between the car and my front door.

But I could run;
From one roof to the other.
Mere seconds would I have to stand that snow,
Just incase it was the pelting kind.
The abusive,
Icy type of snow.

Or I could walk
Slowly,
Calmly,
And take my time
To catch a slow-falling
Delicate flake of snow
As it flutters from the clouds
Above.
It might not hurt at all,
To take that chance.

The obnoxious school bells ring,
Signaling the end of the day.
Now I must face the white world
Outdoors.

Before I know it,
I am home
And I am staring
At the pale grey sky.
I push open the door of the car
And step into
The white abyss
Of whirling gust of wind and snow.

The flakes are soft
And lightly brush my cold cheeks.
I take my time
As I slowly step toward
My front door.
I am exhausted in every possible way
But now I breathe in
The fresh and clear air,
For the fear of the pelting snow
That could ambush me
Is not longer there.

I took my chance,
And it didn’t sting a bit.

Snowflakes

By Kyle Champney
Brattleboro Union High School, Grade 9

We are all snowflakes,
all of us different,
none are alike.
We fall from the sky,
fragile and delicate
waiting to die.
Then we melt into water,
flowing down a river,
straight to the sea
of darkness and death.
But then once again,
were snowflakes.

Winter Days
The soft wind brushes against my face.
The smell of pine sweeps through the air.
Children are running around laughing with no cares in the world.
Many Christmas trees in rows waiting.
Families looking at each one trying to find the perfect one.
Snow finding its way to the ground, softly covering the earth like a blanket.
The air is filled with happiness, love and people caring.
The cold crisp winter air.
So much happiness almost making the winter day feel like a warm summer day.

When Julia Marez thinks about winter, she loves the idea. It's a time when her whole family gets together and sings Christmas music, decorates their Christmas tree, opens presents from others, and lastly, her favorite, getting gifts for others. She doesn't know why this is her favorite time but, it just is. Julia also likes Thanksgiving, Halloween and Valentines Day as well, but Christmas just has that warm, cozy, family feeling that she likes.

The Evil Winter Boy by Dorothy Whalen, Age 8 Grade 3 at Twinfield Union School

It was December 15th, 2010 and it was very cold.
The trees were as still as the wind and the children played. The snow was very thick.
The trees were bare.
Icicles got longer.
And the nights got longer, too.

I sat down across from a girl with short red-hair on the first day of first grade in Mrs. Dione’s class. Nervously fiddling with my fingers, I looked around the room. There were a lot of kids and I didn’t know any of them. Wherever I had gone in the previous six years of my life I had known someone. Now, it was different. I was in a new school with a bunch of strangers. I was about to cry when Patrick walked in. Finally, here was someone I had known since I was three. Patrick was a friend, and had been in my kindergarten class at the Rye Country Day school.

Animals of fall
Submit to winter’s call
Buried deep beneath the snow
In a world only they will know
Above the ground there is not a sound
Snowflakes dance round and round.
The classic smell of evergreen
Mixed with snow white and clean
A world caught in winter’s net
Branches dress in snow for this yearly fête
Hidden by the blanket of silent sleep
Animals creep
A tail white as snow
Belongs to a nimble doe
Peaking between branches are the eyes
Of a chipmunk small in size
A day just begun
With a sparkle of sun
To end with a ray
From a sky gone pinkish gray

Fresh fallen snow lines
My frost-covered window
Icicles hang from rooftops and barns
Lights illuminate the mystical world
We call winter

The smell of cookies wafts in from the kitchen
Cinnamon sugar and spice
Hot chocolate brews on the stove
Smelling sweet and strong

Carolers sing a sweet holiday song,
Melodies ringing near and far
I hear the familiar crackle of
Footsteps on snow
The joyful cries of children
Remind us of what winter is about

I can almost taste the cookies sweet
And hear the harmonies
But most of all
I see the lights
That shine through winter nights

Running through the field gawkily, I release myself to the moment; twirling, spinning, and twisting. The sun blinds me, and I tumble onto the grass in a bundle of skewed limbs. I breathe heavily and notice the surrealism of the moment. The sky’s blue is so perfect, and the ground’s grass is so green. My carelessly sprawled body is so incongruous that I must not be here at all. This bizarre moment sends me six months into the future and past, to a single snowflake landing on my forehead, while a myriad of snowflakes fall in patterns that no one can copy in dance.

A ski day's start

By Eliza Rittenhouse Putnam
The Sharon Academy, Grade 9

Cold air stings the small part of skin revealed between my coat and goggles. I shiver and duck my chin, regretting not having a neck warmer. I head up the hill to the lifts, one ski placed in front of the other. I reach the Quad, the fastest ski lift, and jump on. It's early and the lines are slim. The ride up is peaceful; the sun is only just coming over the hills in the distance.

The snow fairies

By Carmeline Cunningham
Swanton Elementary School, Grade 6

Did you ever wonder who made snow? Well let me tell you how it all happens...

A long time ago inside the clouds, lived very delicate and wonderful snow fairies. Some were girls and yes, some were boys too. The girl fairies wore dresses which were all colors of the rainbow. Some of the girl fairies had orange, blue and even purple eyes.

My First Northern Winter

My first winter ever in the North. The snow fell, the sky was dark, and

the ground was covered in beautiful, white snow. This was a shock to me, being

a native of Texas, attending school in the North. The snow was so enjoyable.

I tried new things that were so much fun, like skiing, snowboarding, and sledding,

which was my favorite. Then, there were some things that I despised, like

negative 30 degree weather and the sun setting earlier, or even when the snow was

pounding on the ground. These things always sadden to me.

The Gladiator

I walk in between trees as myriads of snowflakes fall around me. I feel guilty for each step I take, breaking the trance of perfection in these woods. The pristine snow glistens even when the sun is behind clouds. I pass in wonderment of the scene. These woods come alive in the spring, blossoming with vivacity. In the summer, they reverse themselves and become gentle and languid, idle in every way except involuntarily providing shade. Autumn comes in order for their leaves to explode in color in one final desperate burning stand before they fall away into darkness.

When it is Christmastime I go to my step mom's
house and get presents and then I go to my mother's house and get presents from her and her mom. Then I go to my uncle and his wife's house and get presents from them! So I get a lot of presents.

But Christmas is not all about getting presents. It is about joining with all of your friends and family and having a lot of laughter and joy inside of the house.

And when you wake up that morning and you see all of the presents under the Christmas tree you feel really happy and know that it is going to be a really good day.

To me I think winter is pretty fun because you get to miss school and you get to spend time with family and friends. One of the winter memories that I remember the most was when I was four years old at one of my friend’s birthday parties. When I got there, I put on my winter clothes and then we went outside to go sledding. As soon as we got outside I smelled was cow manure (she lives on a farm). After a while I sort of forgot about it and all I could smell was the cold breeze of winter. When it was my turn to sled I went so fast that I went under her fence and landed underneath a cow!

Soaked Bread in Wintertime

Children ran around everywhere.
It was the night of December 26th and everyone was still in the Christmas spirit.
I sat on a granite bench, still cold from all the snow that had piled there.
I pulled my winter hat down to maintain warmth.
I thought of the home I used to have.
I thought about the jolly Christmas I used to have.
I pondered about all the food that was once available to me, and now I was suffering from hunger.
I did not eat anything for a week and two days.
My head drooped, wondering if there was any hope for me.