My heavens! Have you been watching the weather lately? The majority of the United States has been suspended in a teeth-chattering, bone-chilling deep freeze. With wind chill factors dipping to -54 degrees, there isn’t much to do but hunker-down, stay inside, and try to stay warm.

In my youth, I remember only a handful of winters where the weather was dangerously cold. In fact, most winters were mild enough wear shorts and go barefoot. Winter was preferred over summer, because you could always cover up and get warm, but in the raging summer heat of South Mississippi you could not always uncover enough to get cool — even if you were streaking.

Winters like this remind us Mother Nature is very unpredictable, deserves our respect. Never underestimate her, for she can turn from mild to ferocious in a matter of hours.

I suspect some of our fellow citizens from the Northern United States never expected temperatures in the negative degrees or the amount of snowfall and ice experienced over the last few days, the effects of which will continue throughout the coming weeks. Our hearts go out to them as they struggle to keep warm, and safe, some without electricity or running water.

Now that I am older, it doesn’t take much cold to rattle my old bones and make them ache, and I suspect I am not alone. With southern Mississippi experiencing the hard freeze the next couple of days, we need to take extra precautions to ensure the safety of our loved ones — especially the elderly — our pets, and our pipes.

We are not used to temperatures and wind chills such as these. It doesn’t take long for frostbite and hypothermia to set in. Don’t be outside if you don’t have to. Stay inside and stay warm.

If you do have to go out — layer, layer, layer — shorts and bare feet are not advised.