Nostalgia. It’s a word that brings everything from Polaroids sticking to old family photo albums to long rides in the endless summer to our minds. They’re what helps us when we’re at some of our lowest points.
But not all nostalgic moments are on beaches or on vacations in some distant place. Being a December baby is something that has caused winter to hold a special place in my heart. I love the cold and the snow, and I don’t think I would be myself if I was born in any other season.
Snowball fights have been a part of my childhood for as long as hot cocoa and warming cold hands above the radiators at home. From working to build forts as the first flakes started to stick to the ground, to losing snow between the fingers of gloves too big to wear, snowball fights are something that never gets old, even when I do.
I remember trying to walk through snow almost as high as my shoulders in a hand me down snowsuit as my parents gently tossed snowballs my way. My dad used to shovel snow to make me a fort as we went against my friends who lived across the street at the time. They were always there to make school closings ones I would always remember.
Even impromptu snowball fights on the way to the subway or to a friend’s house in high school were always fun. Running down never ending Manhattan blocks as we molded the snow off of cars with bare hands that were slowly going numb were the best way to unwind after a long day of school. Dodging sidewalk cracks and flying snow became a pastime that left me laughing for a long time after that.
Now, I’m about to start my third year of college, and those times seem farther away than ever, but I can always rely on one thing to get me through. As soon as the snow began to pile up one night, my friends and I grabbed our gloves and ran outside, forming teams and taking pictures along the way. Although it may not seem like much, it was a well-deserved break from the monotony that packed schedules can bring.
So whether you’re enjoying ice cream on the boardwalk, or walking through newly fallen snow, nostalgia is something that’s found its way into our minds and our hearts. It’s what keeps us going through times that we may not think we’ll get through. And even if some of your nostalgic moments are far away, they’ll be coming back soon, and they’ll be just as beautiful as you remembered them to be.
