Yesterday I worked at my desk at home in the early morning hours. It was whistling, windy, and frigid outside, and I was happy to be cozily warm in my apartment as I graded papers and prepared some things for next week’s classes. My hazelnut-flavored coffee tasted especially good as I worked. Later I drove to school and puttered around for a few hours, rearranging bulletin boards and setting up for the coming lessons. The kids came around 8:15 for the SSAT tests, dragging in with sleepy and shivering looks. We held our Christmas dance the night before, and some of the kids looked fairly exhausted. They went quietly down to the testing room and I hard no more of them. The building relapsed into its usually pleasant Saturday morning silence. In the late afternoon, after writing some Christmas cards, I took a walk in the park. Even with my warmest clothes on, I felt thoroughly chilled as I strolled along the silent walkways. The park was nearly empty of people. The stripped trees waved in the wintry wind, and the western sky was streaked with cold-looking lines of pink and orange.