Niagara Falls

Growing up in Buffalo, having relatives that lived in Niagara Falls, and attending Niagara University for four years, it's easy to take for granted the mighty Falls for which the region is named. It becomes so common place to drive over bridges that take you near the falls, the rapids or the many tourist attractions. Inevitably when people from out of town came to visit us, or friends of mine at NU not from the area moved there, they wanted to see the Falls. Usually grudgingly, we took them. This isn't to say I didn't like the falls, it's just that I saw them all the time so they weren't really special to me. I imagine it would be the same for a person living in NYC to drive by the Statue of Liberty, in D.C. past the Capitol building, or in Seattle past the Space Needle.

Even though they are old hat for me, I usually enjoy the look on people's faces when they see the Falls for the first time. So often people are just speechless. They aren't used to seeing that much water, so powerful and majestic, moving down so quickly and then racing down the Lower Niagara River up to Lewiston and so on. And usually this occurrence took place in the summer, when Niagara Falls State Park, Goat Island, Clifton Hill, or wherever we were viewing the Falls, was jammed full of tourists on a hot and humid day. We'd watch the Maid of the Mist boats travel towards the Horseshoe Falls (the Canadian Falls), people venture through the Cave of the Winds, or people just walk about the various islands to explore the history at Niagara Falls. At the end of the day, we would leave, happy for the person experiencing the Falls for the first time, but not feeling moved ourselves. This is how it has been for the last oh, five to ten years for me, every time, without exception. Until this past Sunday.

This past Sunday I had the opportunity to once again experience the Falls with people who had never seen the Falls before (with the exception of one who was there a while back). It was a spur of the moment, let's go to Niagara Falls for the day trip...in the winter, in the cold. I don't recall going to the Falls many times in the winter, so I wasn't really sure what to expect myself. I knew many things wouldn't be open, like the Maid of the Mist or the myriad of outdoor vendors peddling their wares. When I parked my car on Goat Island, you instantly heard the distinctive rush of the water, yet were enveloped in classic, fluffy white snow. The trees could be heard cracking from the weight of the ice and snow. Then we saw the Falls for the first time. You couldn't get as close as you usually could, since many of the paths were closed for the season, but you still were pretty darn close. But because of the snow and lack of people around you, it felt much like I imagined it would in the old day when settlers discovered the Falls. It literally was just you and the Falls. The snow and mist blocked out most of the Canadian skyline, and the lower/closer observation areas were covered by snow, so if you didn't know better, you would have thought it was just ice on a cliff.

As I stood there looking at the interplay between water and ice, I couldn't help but be swept away by the image. An image of contradictions. On one hand, you had huge chunks of ice both in the falls and below. Yet all of the Falls was still flowing around it. Why doesn't it freeze? Or the other questions: Where does all this water come from? Why does it keep going over in perfect unison? It was just such a beautiful sight. I was speechless, lost in the moment. I guess this must be what it is like to stare upon the falls for the first time with boyish wonder, something I probably exhibited the first time I saw the falls at a very young age. I was moved just as much as the people with me who naver experienced the sights of the Falls before.

When my time was over at the Falls, I stole one last glance at the mighty Niagara Falls, and realized it may be taken granted by those of us who live there, but it can still amaze you when you least expect it. For me, this most recent experience at a familiar sight felt like my first time gazing upon the wonder that is Niagara.