Christmas without snow

A number of people told me months ago that the coming winter was going to be very cold and snowy. When I heard that my heart sank because I knew that if that were true I might not make it home to celebrate Christmas in my hometown of Pocahontas. Two years ago there was a bad snowstorm just before Christmas and I had to cancel my travel plans. I did not want the same thing to happen this year.

Fortunately for me (and millions of other travelers), the predictions of a harsh winter have so far gone unfulfilled. I did not spot so much as a speck of snow during the four-hour drive to Poky last week. The temperature was above 40 degrees the whole weekend.

I talked to people in Washington before I left who said they wanted a ?White Christmas? and that Christmas wouldn?t be the same without snow. At the time, I was pulling for a snow-free Christmas because of my upcoming travel. When Christmas Day came, however, I understood what those people were talking about. Snow figures prominently in Christmas songs and decorations, and it doesn?t feel like Christmas-time without the white stuff on the ground.

Admittedly, my sadness at the lack of snow was short lived. The weather was warm enough to allow us to play outside. Last year, my sister Mary and I got our snow pants and boots on and played wiffleball outside. It was rather comical since our massive coats prevented us from doing anything at normal speed. This year was completely different. The thermometer on our garage read 44 degrees Christmas Day. We played wiffleball in our sweatshirts and jeans. No boots, hats or mittens were required.

We had nearly as much fun when we retired to the indoors. Our family loves to play big, group games, and one that we played this year was ?Four on a Couch.? The game consists of setting chairs and a couch in a circle around the room. One of the chairs is left open. The people in the room are divided into two teams, one which is wearing shoes and the other which is wearing socks. Each person writes their name on a slip of paper and puts it in a hat. The hat is passed around the room and each player draws a name, which will become their new identity.

The person who is to the right of the open chair calls out a name. If you drew the name that was called, you move to the open chair. The person to the right of the newly created open chair calls a name, and that person moves to the open chair. The object of the game is to get four members of your team on the couch. It?s a perfect game to play when all our cousins are in town because it is a nice mix of strategy and memory but also simple and easy to learn. Family games like that make it feel like Christmas even when the weather outside does not.