The Unpredictable New England Weather

In the library this morning, while looking for information in a manuscript collection, I found something else entirely: hope.

Sitting safely ensconced in the warm and flake free library, I watched as just outside the window Boston received yet another solid coating of snow -- adding to the several inches still on the ground from the storm last week. And I began to despair. Is there any hope that warmth and sunshine will return to us? Will the snow ever melt?

As a life long New Englander, deep down I know that the melting will happen. But I also know you cannot predict when the winter weather will end. And even with the Red Sox preparing to depart for spring training, actual spring seems so far away. So after drudging through the over 40 inches of snow we have received so far this year, and seeing the below zero temperatures predicted for the coming weekend, I was having a hard time feeling hopeful about a change in the weather.

Until I sat down with the microfilm edition of the diary of Sarah Gooll Putnam (Sally), that is. I had gone to the diary looking for her observations about Civil War soldiers in the city of Boston, but in browsing the diary's pages I found words of hope, as her entries for January reminded me of the truth in the old saying "If you don't like the weather in New England, wait a few minutes."

On 13 January 1863, twelve year old Sally writes about wrapping herself in layers in order to go outside of the house and of a skating party on Jamaica Pond. Just days later, on 24 January, she writes "It is just like summer now. we [sic] such nice warm weather."

Here is hoping there is nice warm weather on the way for us.