I scooted absentmindedly up to the red line, as I had done so many times before. It was just barely peeking through the compressed snow and ice. The man next to me grabbed the chair to ease the pain of it pounding into us at full force and sighed with relief. I forced myself to stretch my calves in my already tight boots so that they would not get stuck in an upcoming mound of snow.
As my feet left the gritty ground, a sense of peace and tranquility permeated through me. The chair sluggishly crept up the thick wire as I tightened my grip around my ski poles so as not to drop them. I leaned back into my frozen seat and took a look around myself. There was an everlasting chain of mountains untouched by man and great pines in the distance, covered with snow from head to toe. As the wind kissed my beet red checks, I could hear the snow calling for me to glide over it.
I snapped back into reality when I heard the exasperated engine atop the mountain pulling with all its strength to bring me safely to the peak. A plump man in worn out, tired dust brown overalls bellowed for us to keep our ski tips up, so as not to come tumbling back down the mountain. I ambled off the chair lift and made sure my feet were secured in my binding. I pushed off hard with both my poles as I left the bitter mountaintop.
I pulled with all the might gathered inside me to keep my skies close together. I started to zigzag down the steep incline. As the turns approached, I drove my poles into the icy snow so I could keep balanced. I curled my toes into a tight ball and held them there for a split second. As I unbound them, it put me at ease to feel the blood rush back into my numb toes.
I decided to take my usual path into the woods. I knew the way by heart, two lefts, a right, and then I was there. It was the slender strip of wooded ground between two lengthy hills. From other people going down the secret path there was a small trail of cleared woods that I could follow down. I dodged the thick trees with precision and I had my eyes fixed straight ahead on the upcoming problems. This left the current obstacles unattended.
My unprotected face burned as the bitter snow incased me. I felt disoriented and light headed. As I squeezed my eye lids shut I hoped and prayed that when I open them everything would be ok. I counted to three and opened my eyes. As I did so pain seared thought my neck and down my spine.
I had laid stationary for what seemed like long enough to go to the moon and back. I knew I had to get up and find my way down the mountain because dusk was setting in. I pulled my feet under me and stood. I attempted to block out all of the piercing pain, but I was quite unsuccessful at that. I did a pizza stop the whole way down the hill. As I skidded down I felt ashamed at how stupid I was to veer off the main path.