by Matthew Pendlington
‘Snovember’ has been and gone, and Britain has been left struggling. Struggling to accept that a nation in the Northern Hemisphere might be subject to inconvenient weather conditions this winter and, subsequently, struggling to do anything about it at all. The earliest snow for almost twenty years has not been welcomed with open arms, but instead greeted with chilling resentment.
Of course, this was not always the case. Winter snow used to be a time of magic, mischief and amusement. Early morning fresh snow would glisten, calling out to be touched for the very first time. Each passing moment without the unmistakeable crunch of boots pressing on a crisp winter wonderland seemed a life-time. Children would saunter in snowy mountains of solace solitude. Parents would wistfully wallow in wild endeavour. And at the end of all that hard work stood the pride and joy of millions of childhoods: a snowman.
But where has the magic gone? The inner-child of many students seems to be resting: too warm to get up and embrace the snow, too at peace to force themselves into lectures and too concerned with travel conditions back home to foray into the cold for the day.
Perhaps the pessimists have a point. For roads to come to a standstill in the 21st Century because of a mere dusting in snow is an outrage. For central heating systems to collapse at the faintest temperature change is a travesty. For just about any outdoor event or facility to be cancelled is ‘snow joke’ either. A little cold you might say…
However, these kinds of people are wrong. To draw an example, up and down the country football fixtures were being called off due to the adverse weather conditions. But rather than accepting the snow as too much of an inconvenience, Darlington Football Club called out for help to remove the snow and ensure that their derby football match against York still went ahead as planned. Over 50 volunteers stepped up in an exemplary display of community spirit, working for hours without complaint. Some people would have been inspired, some would have run away, and some would have got cold feet.
Following suit with this community spirit would be good advice for these student protestors. Maybe if they utilised their time in university to the full and spent their time studying; they’d then have something to shout about. Getting on with life despite the adversity would be more helpful. The reward for the volunteers was a gratuitous speech by Darlington manager Mark Cooper and free tickets to the match. The reward for students is greater job prospects. But unlike the volunteers, there appears to be little effort going into their work; despite complaints over the cost of education.
So the next time it snows, think back to the child eager to get out of bed and seize the day. Complaining about it will not help. Volunteering to clear snow either from someone’s driveway or to ensure sporting events continue would be a positive start. Britain can overcome the challenges it faces, not by praying things will get better, but though hard work.