The last of this winter’s ice I was tripping over all winter. (Photo: Gary Kopycinski)
Commentary
By Gary Kopycinski
There it is.
The beast.
Broken, defeated, at last.
This lonely piece of ice is all that remains of the endless mountains, the glaciers (it seems), I was tripping over all winter on my way to and from my car.
Total, I believe I fell twice on the sidewalk, and once, brutally, on my front porch.
There was at least 2-inches of ice in front of my co-op, down, after the first and only step.
I fell once, real good. Jammed my back into the corner of that step.
I feel nothing there now. Pain free. Healed, I hope.
But what a winter it was.
For all I know, we may still get snow.
And, I certainly know, there are others who had it far, far worse than I did.
What a precious and brutal winter it was.
Total? Village officials tell me we had over 85-inches of snow this winter (as of March 14).
That’s over 7 feet.
Imagine if it had all fallen at once.
We’d be gone.
Well, most of us, anyway.
Above is what remained yesterday. Today, that little bit is gone, but other ice hills remain.
Most of us made it through the storms.
To those who did not, I pause. Offer kind thoughts, prayers.
"And what rough beast, its hour come round at last,
Slouches towards Bethlehem to be born?"*
And I wonder, really, what’s next?
* William Butler Yeats, The Second Coming.
Gary Kopycinski is editor and publisher of eNews Park Forest and a village trustee in Park Forest. His reporting is his own. eNews Park Forest, Inc. is an independent media company and is not affiliated with the Village of Park Forest in any way.
