“All Heaven and Earth,
Flowered white obliterate...
Snow...unceasing snow”
Nicola here! Are you currently wrapped up warm against the weather or one of the lucky ones basking in the heat of summer? Here in the northern hemisphere it was a modest –4 degrees Celsius when I took the dog out this morning, which I’m told is about 25 degrees Fahrenheit.
The threat of “snowmaggedon” in the US and the polar vortex here in the UK has had people rushing to share bodily warmth. No one seems to want to be snowed in alone.
The Urban Dictionary defines a snowmance as:
The brief but intense relationship formed between strangers undertaking similar acts in the snow. This could encompass the respectful nod between two people “suicycling”, talking to neighbours you have never spoken to as you shovel driveways, or asking the man beside you if he wants to grab a beer after pushing a stranded motorist's vehicle.
I imagine lots of us have had experiences like that. The snow brings people together and forms a bond between them.
So when Snowmageddon threatened there were lots of advertisements for a “snow buddy.” Adverts ranged from: “Wanted: a blizzard boyfriend” to “I am looking to be your knight in shining armour during the blizzard” to “Snow day cougar looking for a hot cub.” The inducements on offer included films, cookies, vodka, snowball fights, igloos, woolly blankets, open fires and hot chocolate. It’s all very seductive!
Why is snow such an aphrodisiac? Well, for a start it’s very pretty. It makes almost any landscape look beautiful even if normally it isn’t. Snow brings with it elements of magic and fantasy and transformation. There is the prospect of adventure and excitement.
In terms of amorous impact as well, snow is powerful, elemental and sometimes there’s nothing we can do about it other than hunker down and keep warm. There’s a blanketing silence all around. We feel gratitude that we are safe and warm. In fiction it’s a great way to bring people together and keep them isolated from the outside world. Many, many books and films have wonderfully romantic snowy scenes. There’s an enforced closeness about being snowed up that can accelerate a relationship and make it much more intense, making people rely on each other, work together and open up to one another. And there’s also something far more romantic about snow than most other elements of the weather. Sleet is just cold and wet rather than pretty!
Of course there can also be consequences. In the February of 1947 in England thousands of people were cut off by snowdrifts up to 20 feet deep. The following November had the highest birth rate for 15 years. I myself am a “snow baby,” the result of one of the long, dark cold winters of the 1960s! Most snowmantic relationships are fleeting and when the thaw sets in the romance fades. But for some it can be the start of something that lasts long after the snow has melted.
Who would you like to spend a snow day with? Would you rather be cuddled up with a loved one or with a good book and a hot chocolate? And do you have any favourite snowmances in films or literature?