#52Ancestors, Week 49, Winter

Winter in this hemisphere is at a different time of year. Strangely though, even 200 or so years after emigrating many of us cling to the images of snowy frosty rural scenes at Christmas, red breasted Robins on fenceposts, branches or spade handles in snowy gardens. All the while we plan Christmas dinners which don’t involve standing in a hot kitchen for too long – salads, cold meats (if any), barbecue, pavlova and look forward to afternoons in the shade, at the beach or by the pool.

How topsy turvy it must have been for those early immigrants to celebrate Christmas in the heat of summer and Easter in autumn rather than spring. (interestingly we still celebrate Easter with spring-like symbols too – baby chicks, baskets of flowers and other baby animals). What about birthdays? How did it feel celebrating your mid-summer birthday in midwinter and vice versa? Was seasonal affective disorder a thing then? Did the change affect people at all or was it just a “Oh that’s right, I live HERE now” type of realisation. I wonder did anyone even consider or realise that these moments in their lives would be forever changed after emigrating to the southern hemisphere.

Winter itself is not in the same realm in the southern hemisphere as those in the north which we perpetuate in our imagination. It does get cold, there are storms, we wear warmer clothes and heat our homes. But we don’t have snow, apart from on high mountain ranges (normally), or days where the darkness of evening begins mid-afternoon. We all say we are cold, but in reality, most of us have no idea what it must be like to live and work in temperatures of -15 or more; just as many of or northern hemisphere cousins cannot comprehend living in 30+ or even 40+ temperatures through summer.

I like winter. The one great thing about it, compared to summer, is that you can dress for the occasion. Put on more layers to keep the chill out, take them off when you have thawed out or reached an agreeable Temperature. Summer doesn't have that advantage, it is just hot so you wear minimal clothes to begin with.

Perhaps in 2019 a white Christmas might be on the horizon.