Well the snow that was expected was pretty much a no-show. A few flakes fell west of us, but it was not exactly a winter storm. All we got was a cold rain with not a snowflake in it.

No, the pretty white stuff did not carpet South Alabama. There will be no tales told of the great snowfall at the end of January 2019. It’s a sad day for kids who anticipated seeing their first snow, ever.

Oh, and you never forget your first snow. Without using my toes, I can count the number of times I’ve seen enough flakes fall around here to turn things into a winter wonderland . Still I remember that first time.

It happened the year I attended Mrs. Jackson’s Jack and Jill Kindergarten. That was long before weather radar could predict systems days in advance. Nope, we guessed what might be coming, but mostly we looked out the window to see what was happening with the weather. So, imagine my surprise and delight when I peeped between the blinds and saw that white, fluffy stuff falling from the sky.

Cries of, “it’s snowing,” echoed through the house. It was almost as exciting as Christmas morning. Even the adults caught snow fever and turned into kids again.

Since we only lived a few houses away from the kindergarten, Mother gave me the option of going or staying home. No, they didn’t close kindergarten because it snowed. We were a resilient bunch and most of the kids lived pretty close to Mrs. Jackson’s house.

I gave it some thought then opted to stay home. I learned later that I missed making snow ice cream and building a snowman, but that was fine. I had my own first adventure in my yard.

Mother bundled my brothers and me up in what felt like every sweater and coat we owned. When I see the boy in A Christmas Story, (you’ll shoot your eye out kid) struggling to walk to school in his snow gear, it reminds me of us on that day back in the 1950s.

There were warnings of, “Keep your hats on. Don’t take off your gloves or you are coming in the house.” I’m sure the gloves came off as soon as we knew Mother wasn’t looking.

Ah, the feel of that first snow, so cold and wet and kinda soft. Who could resist cramming a fist full of it into his or her mouth? Never mind you scooped it off the ground and Lord knows what you scooped up with it. Truth be told, I licked a fair amount of it right off the leaves of Mother’s camellia bush.

Oh what a day that was and it seemed to last forever. Somewhere there is a picture of my brothers and me standing together in that snow-covered back yard. Our smiles tell the story of the memories we made that day.

There are other snow days in my memory. One was in the early 1970s when I was a few weeks away from bringing my second child into the world and it snowed so much we had snowdrifts.

That was my oldest daughter’s first snow experience. We wrapped her feet in plastic bags to keep them dry. She was so small the snow came up above her knees as I waddled around introducing her to the taste of magic.

There was also the first snow I saw fall on the lake. The world was beautiful and quiet as I stood on my deck watching the show Mother Nature produced that day.

No, the snow didn’t show up today. I feel bad for those waiting to experience their first snow day. I know they are disappointed, and so are a fair amount of adults who were as excited as the kids.

Ah, but take heart. That big snow that created drifts in 1973 happened on February 10. So, there is still a chance we get a taste of ground/leaf snow this year.

Nancy Blackmon is a former newspaper editor and a yoga teacher.