I recalled how different Christmas was many years back when I was studying in the US. Christmas came during winter. Even though the sun was out…it was freezing cold outside. Being outdoors was a challenge as one would have to brave the chilly Wisconsin air. The day time temperature was between 30˚F – 35˚F and it was even colder at night. Well, it’s the Midwest…what would you expect!!

I remember one Christmas season during my senior year. I was working as a library assistant in one of the libraries on campus. As most of the locals had gone back home for Christmas, my supervisor had scheduled a few of us the foreign students to be on duty during the day and close the library in the evening. Just imagine having the entire library all to ourselves!! Ooo..la..la…It was fun as work was easy.

The place was very quiet as there were not many students around. But it was kind of eerie too having the entire place all to ourselves. We worked a full day shift, from morning right till evening. Having spent the entire day in the library prevented us from knowing that a snow storm had hit our campus area.

As always, we closed the library at 5.00pm that evening. Both my roommate and I grabbed our coats and were ready to head home. The moment we stepped out…boy, it was snowing so hard and the whole area was already filled with a few inches of fresh snow.