heart eyes

cold but beautiful

spring1002
word count: 320

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it snowed a lot where i grew up. the winters were so white you'd think the town was frozen, but i promise you, it wasn't. amidst frozen air and cold days were the kind of people you should only speak about when nostalgic, out of respect for the memories they gave you.

on the numerous snow days, my best friend Dylan's older brother, John, got us both into big winter jackets, hats, gloves, and boots that looked much too big to be the size of my actual feet. he opened the door and their dog shot out, upsetting the fresh snow with patterns of paw prints. Dylan went inside early, but i always stayed.

a seventeen year old girl named Venus, my neighbor and babysitter, took me to the town center for hot chocolate when my parents were out. the snow sprinkled down and the wind blew, but the cafe was warm, and the hot chocolate overflowed with marshmallows and whipped cream. i loved the way Venus called me by a nickname. "Venus," i would say, "don't spill it, or you'll burn." and she would say, "Ember, it's so cold i wouldn't feel it." and i would laugh, every time.

my first grade teacher, Mrs. Kingsley, who brought all fifteen students out to the schoolyard during a particularly beautiful snow shower just to say, "i'm giving you a gift: a memory. one day you will be grown up, and you will think back on your childhood. i ask you to think of this day, cold but beautiful." it truly was the best gift. people ask me where i grew up. i say, "somewhere cold but beautiful."

my childhood was Dylan and John and snow days. Venus and my nickname, short for December. the cafe in town center. hot chocolate and marshmallows. Mrs. Kingsley and the gift of memories. snowflakes and sledding.

cold but beautiful.