Snow to Skating Rink

Pictures to Ponder on

Living on the East Coast of the US and now Scandinavia I have learnt that not all precipitation is the same. There’s wet snow, and dry snow, fluffy one and sometimes it just falls as crystals. Then of course, there is rain and hail.

I had heard of ice-break in a TV show. Yes, my favourite, Northern Exposure. After months of being stuck solid, when ice finally begins to melt, it creates a roaring sound, like the roar of a tiger. I heard it first in Pennsylvania, when I lived on the top floor. If you do not live close to a lake or in live in a tall apartment building you may not hear it.

But if you live in a house where ice has stayed on the roof for sometime, even though it is dangerous, you may hear the roar when it starts to break into pieces, as it melts.

The first time I heard it, it sounded like a snow truck removing snow, but slightly muffled, yet deeper. Like a dragon was waking up.

Soon as I recognised the sound breaking ice, I simply smiled.

‘Ah, so that is what it sounds like!’

But a few years ago, on an evening walk on a snowy evening, I came upon something unusual.

Something you can experience or notice only after a long term stay in a country.

Outside a house, where snow had turned into ice, there was a very small skating rink. It was obvious that the family had removed ice from the passage way and let it stay on to the side of the house. Shaved the ice so the surface was plain and smooth.

Children used it for skating short distance.

Right outside their house.

Then I started noticing how many places this happens naturally.

Here is a photograph outside the local primary school which is five minutes walk from my place.

Notice the reflection of the trees. That is not water, where you see the reflection. That is ice.

Pay attention to frozen snow, that is— ice, around the glassy pool.

That is ice too. But there is a difference.

The glassy pool, the part where trees’ reflection is visible, is where the snow melted and turned into a puddle of water. Shortly thereafter the melted water froze again due to drop in the temperature. In addition, the crumbly part is on a slope. Therefore upon melting, it can only turn into slush but not a pool. Since it is does not have a levelled ground under it, it can’t turn into a pool, even if the entire snow melts.

Whereas, the crumbly looking ice was possibly deeper and denser and never had the chance to melt completely.

So, the icy pool has a smooth surface which works like glass.

Hence the reflection.

In the picture above, the area is too small to be made into a skating rink. In addition, the ice might be too thin to skate on.

But in some public places where there is a large section of ice, it is often turned into a skating rink. Like in the video that I made two years ago. (click here to watch)

The skating rink that you get to in the video (past 2:00 min mark) is in the centre of the town, around which there are bus stops. During Christmas and summer you will find markets in this area.

But during winter, this area turns either into a place where children play with snow, make one or many snowmen or into a skating rink.

This phenomenon of natural skating rinks can only happen in towns with large open spaces. Not a common phenomenon in cities and densely populated areas that leave little open space.

On different days, when the quality of snow is more snowy and fluffy, you can see young children snow boarding on this slope. You can watch it here.

Notice that snow looks different. For snow boarding you need softer and fluffier snow.

The most noticeable aspect is that even in the harshest of climates, nature finds a way of giving us joy. And children never miss a chance!

We just need to keep our eyes open!!

And this is how this area looks on a snowy night!

Here watch a clip from an episode on Northern Lights, in the TV show Northern Exposure.

Artificial lights shine brighter in winter, because of the contrast.

Light is a metaphor for our souls.

Can we do the same, shine our light in the winters of our life span?

Winter meaning the difficult times, which can come both in youth and old age?

So how about this, next time you feel that there is snow falling in your section of life, let it get as cold as it can in your mind.

Sit with the pain and loneliness.

Then in your mind imagine all the snow and hardships in front of you.

In your mind- shave off the ice, level the surface, put a huge lava lamp on the side, put on your sharpest skating shoes, and go skating…… in your mind….as you glide on that levelled ice, watch your thoughts brighten and body lighten.

And that’s what happens when you turn snow into a skating rink.

You simply learn to glide!