From Clouds to Concrete

 We've had all manner of snow types this year. 

Sometimes it was so cold that I couldn't believe there was enough moisture in the air to snow. But it did, and the crystals were well-formed and distinct: large, air-filled flakes that floated wispily back and forth on their way to the ground in a frivolous dance. They were like pieces of tissue floating back and forth (like the little bits your Dad would tear off to staunch the nicks made whilst shaving). Clearing this snow away is like shoveling feathers of down, or maybe it's simply a matter of shoveling clouds! 

Other times the snow was heavy enough to fall in straight vertical sheets. It looked like a shower curtain, but visibly white, not transparent rain. It was as if it couldn't make up its mind whether it was rain or snow. This kind is laden with moisture, compacting as it lands and sticking to itself, laying on the roof as a compressed sheet. Shoveling this kind is like lifting concrete.

And then there are the 50 shades in between these types! I like the chinkling kind that we hear hitting windows and other surfaces as it falls - I call it snow hail, just for fun.

It's no wonder the Eskimo-Aleut have so many descriptions of snow - they were astutely noting the different conditions leading to a variety in snow types. Their traditional knowledge is rooted in experience and interaction with the environment, of recognizing patterns and cycles through the ages. So valuable.