Highveldt Winter

It is winter again on the Highveldt and the air is fresh and crisp. When I was a boy I would walk to school with the lawns of the suburb being covered in a thick layer of frost. Early on in the season one would see rows of sparrows perched on the power-lines above, preparing for their long migration north. I sang and whistled tunes as I walked the distance to school. Before class began we played games such as spinning-top and marbles.

The cold weather brings all these old memories back, while the traffic rushes by in the street in front of the house. More than forty winters I have spent like this, and again the cold comes creeping in. Our winters are not as cold as those of the northern-hemisphere, but still the iciness bites one’s bones. This is especially true of the Highveldt which lies at a higher altitude than the rest of the country.

Fortunately the cold season is not very long, and the peak of the cold will only last for a few months, during the middle of the year. Nonetheless these winter months are chilly to icy-cold, and one does not want to get caught outside in this weather. If it’s a clear winter’s day and the sun is shining, the days can actually be quite pleasant. It is the nights and early mornings that are cold and frosty, and one needs to be wrapped up warmly during these times.

All-in-all winter in our neck of the woods is not intolerable, and thanks to providence, also not too lengthy in duration. Towards the end of the year the cold spell will over and spring would already have sprung. In a manner of speaking; summer lies just around the corner…