by Lutheran Prof | Apr 11, 2013 | Siberia, Snow and ice, Spring
In most places the first sign of spring is a robin or a green blade of grass or a crocus poking its shy head out of the ground. In Siberia the first sign is a trickle of melting snow. This winter it snowed more than usual, and it has stayed colder longer. For the...
by Lutheran Prof | Apr 2, 2013 | Easter, Siberia, Snow and ice, Spring
Easter, or Pascha, as it’s called in Russian, came early this year. Yet the Siberian winter weather in no way quelled the joyous note. The long-awaited exchange “Christos voskres! Voistinu voskres!” (“Christ is risen!” “He is risen indeed!”) sounded with as much vigor...
by Lutheran Prof | Feb 14, 2013 | Cold, Lights, March 8th, Siberia, Snow and ice, Winter
In America, the colored lights came down long ago. Not so in Novosibirsk. In the still-long nights and dark mornings of February they burn brightly. This is all in celebration of the winter holidays. And no, I’m not using that phrase the way people in the U.S. do so...
by Lutheran Prof | Jan 23, 2013 | Baptism, Cold, Russian Character, Russian Orthodox, Siberia, Snow and ice, Winter
What could drag you away from your warm stove to stand outdoors in your swimming suit in sub-zero weather, waiting your turn to plunge below the ice? In The Russian Orthodox church calendar, January 20 marks the Baptism of Our Lord. On this day, many of the faithful...
by Lutheran Prof | Dec 14, 2012 | Cold, Siberia, Snow and ice, Winter
It’s mid-December, and so there should be no surprise that the temperatures in Siberia are in the double digits below 0. The display here is in degrees Celsius. Most of these temperatures aren’t quite as fierce as they appear, since “0” on this scale is actually +32...
by Lutheran Prof | Nov 5, 2012 | Snow and ice, Winter
Winter usually comes to Novosibirsk toward the end of October, and this year is no exception. The first snow fell on October 24. These photos look a lot like those I posted of the last snow just six months ago. Before this snow had a chance to disappear (it...
by Lutheran Prof | Apr 24, 2012 | Siberia, Snow and ice, Spring
You have to approach life in Siberia with a bit of humor. Today I read a joke in a Russian magazine that went like this: “We wintered out the winter. Now we’ll winter out the spring.” Friday it was nearly 70 F. Then the next day the high was around 0 F. And Sunday...
by Lutheran Prof | Mar 20, 2012 | Siberia, Snow and ice, Spring
Novosibirsk is in the throes of a typical March snowstorm. It’s really coming down. For days now the ice has been covered with a new layer of snow–very treacherous for walking and driving. None of this will last long, with the high temperatures hovering a...
by Lutheran Prof | Mar 5, 2012 | Siberia, Snow and ice, Spring
Ah, spring! The time of love, the singing of birds, flowers, greening grass, budding trees … No, wait, wrong place! Here spring is the time of melting snow, ice, more melting, more snow, more ice. Oh, yes, and the time for youth to lose their heads in love, if they...
by Lutheran Prof | Feb 15, 2012 | Psalms, Siberia, Snow and ice, Steps
Anyone at all familiar with the Book of Psalms can’t miss its frequent mention of feet and paths, standing and slipping. “None of his steps shall slide.” “Wilt thou not deliver my feet from falling?” “When my foot slippeth, they magnify themselves against me.” Living...
