I appreciate Rebecca's faithfully pulling us back to the theme of the month. Time flies. I can't believe next week is (U.S.) Thanksgiving, already.
Having read Rebecca's post, I'm thankful I don't live in the Yukon, as she does, where she's thankful it's only 20 below! She brings back memories of my two years in the Great White North, when you could see your breathe freezing on the parka fur around your face. You could run around a building in snow, in very thick socks, because the snow was so dry.
The students (at the residential bush high school where I served) didn't go home for November Thanksgiving; that was a U.S. holiday. We celebrated the Canadian one, in October, with a big meal. Around the third week in November, we were a little homesick, thinking of family gatherings down south.
I'm wondering what the Yukon climate is like for older people. Even down here, they like to head south. What must it be like, to grow old in the Yukon? Where do Yukoners go to retire? I wonder.
It will reach the low 40's here today, and that's cold enough, for November. :-)
Older people? A lot of them go south for the winter, and a lot move south when they retire. But more and more are staying throughout the year than there were in the past.
ReplyDeleteHaving lived in northern Manitoba, I'm guessing that our winters here in the Yukon are probably milder than you experienced where you were. Northern Manitoba's were much colder than what we can expect here. We get cold, but it usually doesn't last lon, and we have very mild weather, too.
Well Thanksgiving is almost here and the entire country is getting excited...and guess it's about time too....well hey for some good old Thanksgiving fun do drop by my Thanksgiving Blog sometime and hare all the fun and mirth of the season!!!!
ReplyDeleteJulana,
ReplyDeleteI am trying to picture it. I tired to picture it after reading Rebecca's post too. We're heading into Summer here - for which I'm thankful!
We had one of our coldest winters this year. Or I should say we had a normal Winter this year.
Enjoyed reading your memories. I've been in snow on holiday to the mountains but have not lived in a place where it snows since I was a tiny kid.
Rebecca,
ReplyDeleteI do think your area might have more in the way of scenery and sense of place to keep people there. I was out in flat bush country, mile after mile of jackpines and birch, with lakes here and there.
Cold seems to be very hard on the older people I know. Probably the closer relationships of smaller communities up there keeps people "warm" and is a positive health factor, over time.
I also think people's blood gets thicker when they live up there, and they develop a tolerance for that cold. The reverse happened when we lived in Atlanta.
Thank you for the invitation, Sean.
Catez,
It's so odd to think of you down there having seasons the reverse of ours. It brings those old geography lessons to life.
I am always more thankful to be heading into summer than winter! Our winters seem twice as long as the summers.