Home… finally

The sun was rising in the air in all its radiance, but the shine didn't bring about the warmth one would expect. The earth was white with snow, lots and lots of snow, except on the road, which was now, and finally, clear. I didn't think it was ever going to happen, but I was now headed home.

What a blizzard it had been! Thursday into Friday I worked at digging the sidewalk in front of my mom's house clear so my mom's and sister's dogs could have somewhere to go outside. After that I turned my focus to my car which had snow drifts almost as tall as my car all around. On Saturday, after way too much effort, I got my car out and went to get a new snow shovel (I broke my mom's trying to dig) and some groceries. When I got back, disaster struck. Okay, disaster is a strong word, so let's call it a winter annoyance struck.

Parking when there's feet of snow around is a bit of a challenge. Backing up into a driveway is even more difficult as I was unable to back in the way I wanted to. I knew I didn't want to nose it in because I wanted to see where I was going when exiting, but as I attempted a three-point turn my car wouldn't go backwards... or forwards. I had found a small section of snow which had melted when I heated my car up and was now ice. I got out, looked under the car, got back in and tried the accelerator harder, which is not advisable, as I began digging a hole where my tires were. I was now truly stuck.

During the four days of snow, I caught cabin-fever. I had heard the term but had never experienced. The thought of being snowed-in when I was going to school was nothing short of a perfect dream, but now that same thought made my body feel like I was being squished and added a sense of needing to go somewhere, anywhere to feel like I were still alive.

The extra days were great in that I got to spend more time with my mom, but I couldn't turn off my brain that felt like the walls were closing in and the only way to be safe was to have the ability to go in any direction in a car. There was no place to go as the roads were still closed and the wind chills were lethal, but to not have the ability if desired to go was the issue.

On Monday, my mom contacted a person that had a piece of heavy equipment, and he came and began to dig the mountain of snow that had drifted in the backyard and driveway. It was a bit annoying to see the machine move a mountain of snow in the same amount of time it took me to get my coat, gloves, and boots on. 

After the snow had been moved, he tried getting my car out with digging, but he looked down at the divots my tires had made and realized he didn't have the right equipment. He went back home, got some strong salt, and within five minutes my car had been liberated once more.

I drove home yesterday. It was a freeing feeling driving down the road. Having the extra time with my mom and sister was excellent, but the anxiety I'm still feeling today of the sensation of being trapped is one I hope eases soon. I felt this feeling many times in my life, such as going to school and feeling trapped, that it's rekindled those types of feelings. Hopefully tomorrow I wake up with the sensation of freedom, of... oh wait, there's a winter storm warning for Saint Louis tomorrow. Winter started today, but can it be over?