Cold Weather
Two things I’d like to start off with, what I want to say here is that I enjoy being outside not despite the cold… but because of it. The world is different when it’s this cold. There are less people, less cars, you get certain special places to yourself. Walking to a coffee shop feels a little bit more like a peaceful adventure, and sitting inside of one on a cold, snowy day is oh so cozy. Being by the ocean on a frigid day is also special in a way I can’t really express, but I’ll try here anyway.
Second thing… I understand the cold means something very different for so many other folks. I’m lucky and thankful that I have a decent winter coat, gloves, all that good stuff. I’m grateful that I have a bed surrounded by four walls to sleep in every night. Cold like this presents so many challenges for unhoused folks, and people who can barely afford to keep the heat on. Growing up in Fall River, I knew a number of kids whose families used the oven to keep the place warm. I faced some of those struggles growing up with my mom, two siblings, aunt and grandma. My mom was anxious every month about how she would afford the heat for the second floor. There were times where our floor just wasn’t suitable for us to stay, so we all slept downstairs in sleeping bags on the floor in my grandma’s house. It wasn’t all bad, I remember waking up on mornings with no school and running to my grandma’s bed and watching Bug Bunny all morning. What I mean to say is we dealt with the cold, and I still feel we had it easier than other people. For some families and folks, the cold means death.
Fortunately, the cold doesn’t mean death for me. It’s an opportunity for me to enjoy my favorite places in a different way. One of these places is the Cliff Walk in Newport, Rhode Island. It’s wonderful in the summer. It’s lush with beautiful trees, colorful flowers, and happy, sun-soaked people walking along the 4-mile path. You can take any number of trails down the rocky ledge and jump into the warm, clear water… or just sit by a ledge and look out over the sea for hours. In the winter it’s different. There are almost no people, the paths which lead you down the cliffside turn to ice making it much more difficult to descend. But there’s something about the way a light dusting of snow covers this oceanside cliff-scape. And although the ground isn’t as colorful, the winter sky can be just as vibrant as ever during sunrise or sunset. The seagulls still hover over head, and the waves still drag rocks onto other rocks creating that beautiful, soothing noise. And you have it all to yourself.
There is a group of people that can always be found near this area though, and part of me thinks they have more fun in the cold.
Newport is a tricky place for me. I love it, but it doesn’t love me. It doesn’t love people like me. People who work for a living, people with customer service jobs or manual labor jobs, or mothers who take care of their homes performing countless hours of unpaid labor while also being a part of the workforce as well. It’s a town that relies on people who work hard for a living but only protects folks who have either inherited money and land from their ancestors, or people who rely on other folks’ labor to make a living. Tourists and service workers help to make this place what it is, but it feels like it’s a club we will never truly be a part of. I think about this whenever I’m in Newport. Still, I enjoy myself there. I love the homes I’ll never be able to afford. I love looking through the windows at all of the fancy stuff I’ll never be able to buy… and truthfully don’t care to.
In the downtown area there is a bay (or a harbor, I don’t really know) that is filled with boats. It really is an idyllic, vibrant seaside town that I’ve come to fall in love with here in New England. And although it’s much more alive in the summer months, these colder months help me appreciate it even more. Maybe it’s less an appreciation for Newport and more an appreciation of living so close to the ocean. Even at its toughest time, I wouldn’t want to be away from the ocean. It solidifies for me that this is where I’m supposed to be.
Hmmmmm, I’m not sure if I made any sense but I’m glad I got all of that down. If you stuck around through all of that nonsense, thanks. If you didn’t, I totally get it. I encourage everyone to dress warm and spend some time outside. Bye everyone!