Changes in Temperature: A Sensory Feeling of Struggle or Relief

Weather changes with seasons. Unfortunately, it is not always ideal, so our amazing bodies constantly struggle in adjusting to the changes in temperature. Though not a tangible object, temperature is something we all possess, or have to live with throughout our entire lives.

I decided to write about this topic during one of my son's final football games. It was a cold, windy and dark evening. It was the first evening (this autumn) that I had to wear my winter coat. I had a hard time concentrating on the game since I felt so cold. As I observed the cheerleaders, whom were not appropriately dressed for the weather, I imagined how cold they must have felt. I noticed they were "fighting" the temperature by actively moving along to their cheers but it was clear that they did not perform like they usually do when the temperature outside is ideal. I felt sorry for them, in a way.

I grew up in warm, tropical weather. In Puerto Rico the temperature rarely drops below 70, therefore, I know what it is like to experience being in shock because of changes in temperature. When I was eight years old, I moved with my family from Puerto Rico to the State of Colorado. That was my first major transition in life. Colorado is the state in which I learned English and saw snow for the very first time. It was summer, and I truly loved the mild temperature and atmosphere. I was amazed at seeing and feeling snow for the first time, when we visited St. Mary's Glacier that summer.

My parents love the outdoors and frequently took my brother and I camping. In the beginning I felt excitement and looked forward to our outings, however that excitement

gradually turned into frustration as the temperature kept getting colder. At times, when we went camping, I would quietly cry myself to sleep, trying to keep warm in my sleeping bag. I believe it had to do with the fact that I was experiencing "cooler" weather for the very first time.

I did not enjoy being out in the cold weather nor breathing the cold air. It caused my little body a lot of effort in trying to keep my body temperature up. I recall "shivering to pieces" in the cold and how the dryness in the air would give me chapped lips.