That Feeling of Winter Joy

The microscopic ice particles crunch under the weight of my white fuzzy slippers and my arm hair stands on end as the crisp morning air rushes through my robe to greet me. I smile and shiver back while watching the pointed ice formations hanging from the gutter slowly melt away. The sun stretches over the frosty white hills transforming them into a tan grassy color, waking them up from their short hibernation and envelopes them in its warm, sunny rays. I wake up once more with a yawn and stretch as if the sun has reached me too, letting me know that the day has just begun.

I tip-toe back in as slowly and silently as possible, careful not to step on any creaks that may lie within the wooden floor, eager to echo through the house if stepped on. It is during these times in the morning in which I feel a smile grow across my face, letting me realize that the day will be even better than it is right now.

I hear a muted beep and I spring up, no longer concerned about making a ruckus, and fly down the stairs as if I were racing the Flash. Nothing could stop me— I was impenetrable and determined to win this race, even if it meant breaking the sound barrier. However, something halted it before I could win— my sister.

"Amelia! Amelia! Come look at the snow with me!" she whined, tugging on my striped pajama shirt. I couldn't resist the look of my five-year-old sister, so grudgingly I followed her as she wrapped herself in her age-old blanket. We sat by the red-bricked fireplace, containing hundreds of glimmering embers, barely holding on to the spark that kept them alive from the night before. One by one, each red-hot piece of coal fizzled out, leaving behind a trail of soot and a puff of smoke. I wondered where each poof of smoke will land as my sister and I stared out of the windows watching each speck of frozen rain roll off the roof and float to the ground, reestablishing melted snowy blanket.

I gazed at my sister and pondered how she will grow up without me, her older sister protecting her. I'll become an adult and she'll barely be in kindergarten; I'll be at college training my brain to become more mature while she'll be learning the ABC's and counting to ten with her tiny fingers. I thought of my older sister and how she was only two years older than me versus twelve years. I sat next to her, my darling little Lucy, thinking about her future and how she will be a snowflake– unique from the rest, but also fearless while venturing into the world. Lucy then began to look up at me and a bright toothy smile appeared, telling me that she was having the time of her life.

I look back on that day, with the breeze, snowflakes, and the hot embers. I think of my sister, I think of how much has changed and how she used to look up to me; however, I now look up to her. I admire her courage, respect, perseverance, and hope for the future. Lucy proves she can lead any group to victory, with her encouraging words, caring heart, and good soul. She has transformed from a little girl who wanted to watch the snowflakes fall to a young woman who seeks to take part in the adventures that the world provides for her. I am blessed to call her my sister.