The air was a cool crisp breeze with the water as smooth as glass and as soft as silk. Today was going to be my big day. I was going to learn how to water ski. When I first heard about this type of sport, I thought it would be a lot like snow skiing with the big clunky shoes and oversized skis, but, boy, was I wrong. This type of skiing was nothing like I had ever done. It was a thrill and a terrifying dread inside of me. This was the first time I had ever wanted to do something knowing how much it might hurt if I fall.
It all started on my dad’s boat, a big white and black orca speeding through the water without a worry in the world. My dad had bought special training skis for my sister and me. They had smaller holes for my tiny feet. When I put my foot in there it felt strange, like my foot was too big and too small. It squeezed my toes like little grapes, and my heel was not even close to where it was supposed to be. Little did I know, there was a sliding mechanism to make it tighter against my heel. After both of my feet were in, I just wanted to be flying across the serene blue water, but there were a couple rules I had to learn first. One such rule was the different hand signals. A thumbs up meant that the speed was too low, and a thumbs down meant that it was too high. Another hand sign was a chopping off the head motion when the hand goes palm down across the neck, which meant stop or I’m done. Once I was done with those hassles, it was on to the next task: the water.
My dad threw me into the water, but on my way down I felt a rush of fiery energy surging through my body and fully ignited when I touched the icy cold water. It was such a rush that I could not believe I was on my way to being a skier. My sister was also on the boat and she threw me the rope, which almost hit me in the head, but that was okay. The rope had a red and white twisted pattern just like a candy cane. I was so happy that I could almost taste the excitement running wild through my veins. When my dad asked if I was ready I screamed as loud as possible, “YES!”.  He started the boat with a roar like a tiger and zoomed off into the distance as I trailed behind ready for anything except what came. I got pulled forward and was on my skis for a couple seconds and then, wham, all of a sudden my face hit the water. It felt like a slab of cement came and hit me. It hurt so bad that I did not want to try it again, but something inside of me told me to keep trying, so I did. Time after time, it was the same thing, a whack in the face here and smack in the face there. I thought I would end up with bruises all over me, but that was just my dramatic side. After a while I took a break and tried it one last time, and it happened just like that. I was upon on top of the world, soaring through the sky like a bird, but on the water. I could bend down and make my fingers caress the silk while still smoothly moving through the water.
This was my first time learning how to ski. It was a very difficult and long trek, but in the end, it was worth every little bit of pain, because I felt like I was a bird flying free through the sky with nothing to keep me back. I will never forget this day, with all the help and support my family gave me. This memory will last forever, and I will always enjoy skiing in the water just as if it was my first time with all the success of being able to do it.