Winter gets a bad rap on the prairies. By February, most of us are tired of scraping windshields and plugging in vehicles, and we start counting the days until the snow melts. But every once in a while, winter reminds you why it deserves a little respect.
Remember the other week when we had all of that fog and hoar frost covered everything! I took my boys out tobogganing. Nothing fancy — just a couple of sleds, a thermos of something warm, and a hill that feels twice as big when you’re 5 years old.
When frost covers the trees, we all stop and stare, and take pictures. Come on, you know you do it too.
On the prairies, where the horizon stretches forever and shelterbelts stand like quiet guardians, that frost turns the ordinary into something almost unreal. The fields shimmer. Fence posts look sculpted. Even the old grain bins down the road seem to stand a little taller.
It’s not flashy beauty. It’s subtle. Wide open. Honest. Winter on the prairies isn’t always easy. But on the right day — with hoar frost on the trees and kids flying down a hill — it’s hard to imagine it any other way.
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