Courtesy photo My husband helps young Ellen and Bob with a little camp snowman.

ESCANABA — When snow is in the forecast and the wind-chill puts temperatures below zero, it’s good to take some advice from the snowman.

Frigid weather is a fact of life in Upper Michigan. Frosty the snowman can help us beat the winter blues.

By the time February rolls around, snowmen, snowwomen, snow animals and snow sculptures have sprung up from the Keweenaw to the Mackinaw.

Maybe there is a snowman in your front yard right now.

The first piece of good advice from a snowman is to keep on smiling no matter how cold it gets. Regardless if the snow drifts are up to your elbows be happy!

Each day is a gift. If you dress warm in many layers of Yooper clothes there are many wonderful wintery activities out there to be enjoyed. Strap on your snowshoes, grab your skis or lace up your ice skates, we are fortune to have such adventures just outside our doors.

Frosty says “wear a good hat.” Just like no snowperson is complete without a hat, our winter wardrobe is not complete without a wool chook or fur trimmed hood. We lose a great percent of our body heat through the tops of our heads. It’s very important to cover your head to keep the rest of your body warm when the cold north wind blows.

Be a friend to nature especially during the winter months. The snowman recommends sitting quiet and still. Scatter some sunflowers seeds, apples and carrots around you and let the birds, squirrels and rabbits have a treat.

Snowmen and snowwomen are also very good at getting people to reminisce. You can’t drive by a new snowman on your way to work and not reminisce about one that you made with your kids years ago.

I have so many fun memories of snow people making over the years. Back in the early 1960s my aunt Sandy would help me and my two older brothers and two younger brothers make snowmen. I recall the old fashioned snow pants and snow boots that we wore.

Making snow people and snow animals at camp was a must every year when the snow got wet and pack-y.

One year, my mother helped us make a huge snow dinosaur in our backyard. She even used food coloring mixed with water to make him green.

When my children were young almost every year we created some sort of snow creature in our yard. I can still smell the wet woolen mittens and see their rosy red faces from being outdoors.

Last year with COVID-19 and all of the social distancing we did, the snowman was almost like a family member. I talked to Frosty a lot last year!

Another hint from the snowman is – take note, the hours of day light are slowly getting longer.

Enjoy the winter while you can.

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Karen (Rose) Wils is a lifelong north Escanaba resident. Her folksy columns appear weekly in Lifestyles.