One Snowy Winter's Eve
My first attempt at skiing happened a long time ago on a
winter vacation, during a memorable trip to the picturesque
valley of Vadaal, Norway. The steep hill slopes were covered
by a thick blanket of snow, an ideal location for skiing. I had
optimistically rented the skiing gear that was beyond the
level of my skill. This I realized in a tragic way, but at the
outset I convinced myself that the number of winter sport
events that I saw on the TV qualified me to dexterously slide
down the sparkling slopes.
My friend, a seasoned skier, gave me a brief demonstration,
instructing me, “Make a wedge to stop, parallel to slide fast,
balance body weight etc.” I thought that was easy, sensed no
difficulty at all, but reckoned it to be a great fun moving fast.
But the outcome shaped differently. The moment I released
the lift handle the slope seemed to tilt precariously. I felt being
dragged by gravity and rushing down-slope at an incredible
speed with the arms flailing wildly. I tried hard to maneuver
my legs properly for the skis to make an wedge to decelerate,
but I couldn’t. Panic set in. On an impulse I jammed the knees
together with all my might. The skis closed, crossed each other.
They didn’t stop my slide, but made me airborne instead. I
landed on my back and slid a long while face-up. Finally, I came
to a complete stop when my head bumped gently against the
safety barrier. I lay there covered in scraped snow for how long
I didn’t know. The skis I saw pointed skyward. Through their gap
I found the smiling face of my friend simply peering down at me.
He dryly asked, “ Are you OK?” I said, “ Yes, so far.” “You should
thank God, you didn’t break your ankles”. Surely, I was lucky,
although my skiing career got frozen forever on that snowy
winter’s eve.
legs forgot the ground
snow whispered beneath the back…
fate turned frozen world
Post Comments
Poetrysoup is an environment of encouragement and growth so only provide specific positive comments that indicate what you appreciate about the poem. Negative comments will result your account being banned.
Please
Login
to post a comment
Turn off ads, get more exposure for your poetry, and get more features with a
Premium Membership.
