Growing up in south Mississippi, I learned early on that Christmas is usually hot. I remember very vividly wearing a t shirt and shorts while opening gifts from Santa. There has been very few Christmases in which it was actually cold, and the temperature in December can vary not only from day to day but from hour to hour too.

Extreme heat is one thing, but extreme cold is a completely different thing. I've seen snow once or twice in my life, and it's always been really icy and wet. Being cold natured as well, when the temp drops below 50 degrees I'm miserable. Despite, this however, I have always greatly desired to see real snow. I always imagined snowflakes in my hair, and while I had a sort of romanticized view of snow, I so badly wanted to see white, fluffy snow fall from the sky.

Yesterday, my childhood wish came true. In the midst of studying for a final exam, I got a text asking if I'd seen the snow. I immediately leapt out of bed to check my window, and sure enough, it was snowing! I made a mad dash for the stairs to, of course, go play in it. I called everyone I knew to show them how fluffy and pretty the flakes were. Then, I glanced in my camera while on video call with my mom and realized it had all collected in my hair, just as I had always imagined it. I felt like a little kid getting her Christmas gifts in the morning all over again, and I gushed for hours over it.

Sadly, the snow didn't last until morning, and I know it wasn't nearly as real as snow further north. I would still really love to see the snow from somewhere really cold, like the mountains, but I think that dream will have to be fulfilled at a later date. But while it doesn't seem as noteworthy and beautiful to a lot of people, seeing "real" snow brought me just enough joy to get through finals week. I cannot wait to get home and tell everyone how gorgeous the view of my dorm's courtyard was as the snow collected on the grass and in my hair.

The snow was the best early Christmas gift I could have ever wished for, and had I not been on my campus for finals, I would've missed the entire thing. Thank you, Starkville, for being so beautiful.