Snow Days are the Best!

By Jim Hunt for the Harrison County News & Journal

From as long as I can remember, the term “snow day” brought a smile to my face and the feeling that life could not get much better.

In grade school, when we got a big snowstorm, we anxiously waited for the 11 o’clock news and watched the scroll along the bottom of the screen. When we saw

“Harrison County,” a cheer went up, and we immediately started planning the next day. Boots, gloves, sleds, and snow shovels all made the list. The next morning, we had hot chocolate and Wheaties, watched cartoons, and eventually someone started pulling on long underwear.

My poor parents looked as disappointed as we were happy. We asked my dad if he would build a bonfire so we could go sledding late into the evening. Somehow, we made the most of the day.

By nightfall, icy boots and soaked jackets were strung out across the kitchen linoleum like trophies.

After college, my first job was as a learning disability teacher, and I still remember the first snow day of my working life. School had been called off, and I was looking forward to a quiet day goofing off while still getting paid. What could be better than that?

After sleeping in, I went to McDonald’s for breakfast and decided to drive by the Kelly Miller Building, where my office was located. I was curious to see if anyone had shown up. To my surprise, every parking space was filled, and the building was buzzing with activity.

I was dressed in jeans and an old sweatshirt, but I walked to my office anyway and looked around at all the supervisors sitting at their desks. I was too embarrassed to ask why we were not taking the day off, so I sat down, doodled at my desk, and watched the clock crawl toward 3 o’clock. As it turned out, the county offices were expected to report on snow days, and since my office was in that building, I was expected to do the same. Snow days took a sudden turn for the worse.

Fast forward about fifty years, and snow days have regained the smiles and happiness of those years gone by.

When my wife and I see the snow, we wait like school kids for the television to post that familiar scroll. “No School in Harrison County,” and we know our granddaughter will be spending the day with us. We check to make sure we have an adequate supply of hot chocolate and wait for the doorbell to ring the next morning.

Sadie comes in with that same grin I had from years ago. She throws off her boots and jacket and jumps on the couch to begin a SpongeBob SquarePants marathon. After stuffing herself with Goldfish crackers and apple juice, she wants to go outside and explore the wintry wonderland.

When she comes back in, the hot chocolate is steaming. She wraps her arms around us and says, “Snow days are the best!” And we could not agree more.