Day 23 – A Snowy Day

“bUt It’S sPrInG!”, I can hear the voices cry out from behind their quarantined doors as they gaze through their windows. While most people may think that, my birthday is in a few days and quite a few of them have been spent building snowmen. Looking out today makes me think fondly of one particular birthday I had. I wish I could tell you how old I was, but the truth is my memory, when it comes to my youth, is absolute garbage. I do remember, however, that my parents let me have a sleep over. I remember the taste of the garlicky naan that my friend Anuj brought over since I expressed such joy at lunch the first time he shared it with me at school. We watched old scary movies and stayed up well into the early morning hours. My mother then made us my favorite breakfast, french toast, before piling us into the purple Dodge Caravan and driving us off to my favorite place in the world: Brookfield Zoo. I know this zoo like the back of my hand and could list facts about every animal that we passed. If you had told me then that I would get married there later in life, I would have responded, “probably.” Despite it being an overcast day and frigid, we all had fun throwing snowballs at each other on the way to different indoor exhibits to warm our hands. There was always laughter about something. What I would give to go to the zoo today and toss a few snowballs on this grey morning, but I’ll settle for watching my dog romp through the snow like a madman. Stay warm and safe, everyone!