December 6

The weatherman forecasts icing in a couple of days as a warm front with rain from the south gives way to a fast moving arctic clipper, come down from the Great Lakes.

We’re nearly at the anniversary of the big ice storm that happened a few years ago here in town; the evidence of its damage is still visible. This is particularly the case this time of year, when the absence of foliage makes the tree branches stand out well into the woods.

Throughout town, there are still “hangers” and “widow makers” from that past storm, branches that succumbed to the weight of the ice and snapped, yet remained fixed and dangling from the point of breakage. Of course, many fell to the ground long ago, and the majority snapped and fell during the storm itself, breaking power lines, damaging roofs and blocking the road. We recall how throughout the night of the big storm, large limbs were breaking several a minute, sounding like gunfire around the house and through the woods. The morning light revealed a landscape of icy beauty and sheer destruction.

The thought of another storm of ice coming, even if a minor thing, sets our nerves on edge.