By Elizabeth Coscia ’12, Editor-in-Chief 

The phone rang— when my mom said “Oh hi, Uncle David,” my sister and I screamed with frustration. Like every other student and faculty member of Newark Academy (that had power), we were waiting for the snow day call. The strange thing—it was October, just one day before Halloween.

An unlikely autumn snowstorm swept through the northeast, including the towns surrounding Newark Academy, on Saturday, October 29, jarring fall athletes out of their seasonal mindsets. Most harshly, the Field Hockey team played a very snowy game against Montclair Kimberly Academy on Saturday morning. Come Sunday, soccer players glanced out their windows and wondered how the ball would roll over two feet of snow.

Getting through Saturday night to Sunday morning, however, was no simple task. Portions of several towns including Livingston, North Caldwell, Milburn, Essex Fells, and Montclair lost power Saturday, and some have still not restored it. In many homes candles were lit, kids were snowed in, and clothing was layered as temperatures dipped in now heatless abodes. Families sat tight as enormous trees and outreaching power lines came crashing down. While some were bored in the absence of electronic devices, others were charmed by the intensity of the storm; regardless, the unexpected situation was somewhat off-putting.

My sister and I were eventually delighted to receive our October snow day call. On Monday, it was strange and somewhat exhilarating to feel like we had transported to the middle of December. Autumn was on top of winter; seasons were artificial constructs. Several harried seniors rushed to their local Panera Bread cafes to submit their early college applications, due electronically the next day, and showers were begrudgingly forgone by many. Some families established sort of refugee camps for friends and family that lacked heat and electricity.

The storm slowed everything down. Most concretely, cars moved more carefully, school was cancelled, and people were reluctant to leave their houses. However, on a more psychological level, the snow gave students, teachers, and families, caught up in the relentless routine of the school year, some time and incentive to think and reflect. The ephemeral coexistence of the two seasons caught many, used to relying on the parameters of seasons, off guard. Often people fail to notice how quickly or slowly time drains or stagnates in their lives, constantly focusing on the next approaching test, vacation, weekend, or year-end. They disregard the possibility that this rigid structure is grounded in nothing more than mental compartmentalization. The storm proved that at any point in time circumstances have the potential for unanticipated change; as I navigated though power lines during a less-than-conventional fall run, I vowed to appreciate the slow and vivid duration of each season while nonetheless noticing the pace at which time inevitably flies.

At present, enjoy the extra time that the three day week has allotted you to read articles from The Minuteman!

Sincerely,

The 2011-2012 Staff of The Minuteman