Here in Montana, 0° is not theoretical. It is an actual number with weight. I mention this because that chill number is hunched on the thermometer outside my house right now, settled in like it owns the place.
Cold
like this becomes a condition, not merely a sensation. It changes more than how
your skin feels. Systems adjust. Night grows heavier. Sounds arrive sharper, as
if pared down to essentials. Everything outside stiffens: trees, doors, tarps,
vehicles. Water locks itself in place. Animals, and all crawlies, retreat.
Outside,
the cold is everything.
Even
indoors, the cold rearranges life. Feeding the woodstove rises to the top of
the task pyramid. The world narrows agreeably. Only indoor activities make
their case. It’s time to work a jigsaw puzzle, clean behind the refrigerator,
snuggle up to the wifey and watch something glowing on a screen.
Inside,
the warmth is everything.
—Mitchell
Hegman
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