Neighbours.

A story about snow.....and about neighbours.

Snow covered tree. (seems almost magical..)

To be honest, winter is not my favourite season. I have often felt that I was meant to have been born in a warm country because of my aversion to the cold, and my love of the sunny seasons with the beautiful flowers.

But winter isn't all bad, there are some things that are awesome about it, the way the snow can look magical, making snow angels, going snow tubing, having snowball fights and making snow men. There is something truly majestic about dropping backwards into a patch of untouched snow and making your snow angel creation. Only to try and get up ever so carefully without wrecking your art. And snow tubing, well is just fun. Jumping into an inner tube and then being pushed down at hill in what feels like lightening speeds. Only to arrive at the bottom with a scratchy throat from screaming (that might just be me), and full of adrenaline, because you survived.

Me & my friend Jean Jean (making her first ever snow angel! I think she did a stand-up job!)

In February of 2008, Toronto was hit by a series of huge snow storms. This particular one introduced me to my neighbours and reminded me about the kindness of strangers.

The thing I have noticed about winter weather, particularly when there is an impending storm, is that it sometimes inspires an unexplainable comraderie. As a kid that comraderie was the celebration of the Snow Day....and actually as an adult too....yes, I admit it, I was the one who danced shamelessly around the office when the president of our company sent us home during a storm. The Snow Day is representative of play time. Its like an unexpected gift, where as a kid, you were outside to build snowforts and go toboganning as soon as the radio announcer mentioned that the buses for your school were cancelled. As an adult, (for me anyway..) it often means a hibernation day, where I get to wear pj's all day, without guilt or shame, cause you know....we are in emergency conditions...and watch my favourite movies. In some circumstances, it also means going outside to have fun in the new fallen snow.

The other kind of comraderie inspired by snow storms is the kind where complete strangers help you out, simply because they can.

On one day which we got sent home, my car got stuck on the street as I was attempting to drive up a short distance to my driveway. The plow had not yet been down the street, and i could not go fast enough to keep the momentum up through the snow. I spent a good while driving up and down the street, but kept getting stuck on one part. Finally one of my neighbours came out of her house (in her Pj's) and pushed me out. She and another neighbour then helped me dig out my driveway. I have lived on my street for almost four years, and it was the first time I had even had a conversation with this woman. Yet she took time out of her day to help me. Just because she could. How awesome was she?

A few days later, a snowplow left a nice package of snow at the end of my driveway. Tempting fate, i tried to drive over this lovely package in an attempt to push the snow down so I could get into the drive. I was thinking I would have time to shovel it later. As my car is fairly low to the ground, and this was quite a pile of snow, I got stuck. I left my car there for many hours because there was no one around on my street to ask for help. I tried digging out the snow, adding salt, pushing the car, stamping my feet, cursing, wishing, praying.....but nothing seemed to work..Later in the day, I saw a neighbour and asked her if she could give me a hand. She and I tried for awhile to no avail. And then, this man, a total stranger, drove by. He saw us trying to move the car, backed up and offered to help. Within minutes, the car was unjammed, and he had helped me put it back in the parking space. My neighbour then helped me dig out the snow, and clear the driveway. My car would have been there for days if they had not helped. I was touched by their kindness.

On another of the snowstorm days, I chose to take the bus to work. On one precarious hill on the way to the subway station, well after we had passed the bus stop, the driver stopped to let this woman struggling to wade through the snow to catch the bus. If he had not stopped, she would of likely been waiting there for another half hour in the bitter cold and slush, no where near a bus shelter. I have been on this bus many times, and have never witnessed the driver stop for someone like that during rush hour. It was a kind gesture and it was nice to see.

These are only the things I witnessed and experienced in that short time. I'm sure, that it happens every day. It deserves to be celebrated, and I hope it happens more. This posting goes out to the kindness of friends and strangers. For people caring about one another, simply because they can.