Anna ~ "The Perfect Day"

The Perfect Day

By ~Anna Bowdler

Last winter, Mackenzie and I were racing down the mountain from the top of the Gondola. My dad yelled up to us, “Do you girls want to go down the trail or through the trees?” That day he taught my friend and I how to dive downhill.
The sky was crystal clear. It was beautiful! The sun was sparkling, and the snow was as white as I had ever seen it. Simultaneously, we yelled, “Trees!!!” So we skied through the trees laughing, and at some points screaming, all the way down to the bottom of Thunder. At that point, we continued going straight down the mountain.
At a small clearing, Dad told Mackenzie and me, “Since you girls have improved, you will be able to go down harder runs this year, and you will need to be able to get out of any situation. So I’ll show you how!” He then explained to us that all we had to do was jump head first down the hill, land on our backs, and then swing our legs downward. Obviously, we tried it!
For the next ten minutes, we dove downhill. Each time excitement ran up to me, pushed me down, and sent me into a fit of hysterical laughter.
Later in the day, we skied down Rendezvous Bowl. We were coming down a steep section of the run and MacKenzie and I were having problems. My dad’s solution, “Do what we just learned!”
As I watched MacKenzie dive, I thought back through my entire life. I don’t think I have ever seen my dad have problems on the ski hill unless he wanted to show me how to do something. Then again, he had been a ski race coach at Snow King for twenty YEARS!!
Back in reality, it was my turn to jump. I’ll admit it; I was a little bit scared. It was definitely a steeper hill, and the ground was much harder and packed in. Help me!!!! I thought, a silent plea. However, I knew I was stuck. For another, MacKenzie had just done it and she was fine! I had no choice. Fear gripped my heart as I closed my eyes and dove. In an instant, I on my back and swinging my legs over my body. I stood up and realized I was O.K!!! Then I skied on down the hill in the direction of my friend and personal coach.
You can tell when you’ve had a perfect day, a day you never forget. That day was a perfect example for me.