Most people can agree that the childhood years are unforgettable. I would have to agree with this statement. When I was a child, I was always going and going doing something crazy. I had the tendency to try something before I even knew what I was doing.

In elementary school, my family and I went on a ski trip to Colorado Springs over Christmas break. My dad was the only one of us who had ever been skiing before. The rest of us had absolutely no clue what to do. We went to the beginners bunny slope first. Before going up, my dad briefly showed us what to do by demonstrating. Then we were ready to try it ourselves. My sisters went down before me and looked totally natural. I wanted to be just like them, so I head down the slope. Apparently, the wind blowing by my face also blew my brain out of my head and took it away. I totally blanked and had no idea what I was supposed to do. My skis were perfectly straight and I was squatted down. I looked like a professional skier. Unfortunately, I was gaining speed rapidly. I forgot to go back and forth to keep a steady speed.

My sisters didn’t recognize me at first as I go speeding down passed them. All the people in front of me are diving out of the way because I can’t slow down. I’m screaming at the top of my lungs! Finally, my sisters realize that it’s me speeding down the slope. They proceed to scream for my dad to look up. They get the people’s attention at the bottom of the slope, and the relay the message to my dad. He abruptly turns around and sees me coming. He runs over to right where I am heading. He sticks out his arm. Before I know it, I clothesline right into his arm. I do a total rotation in the air and belly-flop into the snow.

I will never forget this incident. It happened at least 11 years ago, and I can envision it as if it happened yesterday. Those are the moments I treasure and linger on. The innocence of belly-flopping into the snow makes it seem as if the bigger troubles in life will never catch up to me.