Riding Goofy

We have returned victorious from our snow boarding trip. Matt and Asherel looked like real snow boarders by the end of the day. I broke no bones and lacerated no body parts, thus my goals were accomplished.

The mountains of North Carolina are beautiful, but we were incredulous as we approached our hotel, only 2 miles away, and as yet saw not one drop of snow. The ski mountain was only 2 miles from the hotel so we could not imagine how it could have snow. It was 60 degrees, by the way.

Even as we pulled into the ski parking lot, we asked the attendant, "Where is the snow?"
He pointed behind him, and indeed there was a snow covered mountain. I don't know how they refrigerate a mountain, but somehow they do. We were early, an hour before our lesson so we got our equipment and went bravely to the slopes. Of course, at first, we stayed on the level slope. The first terrifying realization was we had no idea how to step onto the board- there is no sign that says heel here, toe here. There was also a strap that we had no idea what it was for. So
I found someone who had snowboarded 3 times and thus was an expert and asked him. Asherel had done some research before we had arrived so knew that our first step was to lock in one foot and then push around with the other to get the feel of sliding. This was surprisingly difficult. It uses muscles that I am sure I rarely if ever use, and they were not happy to be called into service. Within a few minutes though, we were climbing partway up the bunny slope and sliding tentatively down. Matt even braved the whole bunny slope.

Then the first thing they taught us at our lesson was that people like me who are the rare exception of using right foot as the lead foot are "Riding Goofy". I was only one of two Goofy riders in our lesson, so everything the instructor taught, I did the opposite. When the rest of the class did a heel dig, they curved left. I curved right (at least in theory- I never did quite get the knack of turning....) So as if it wasn't bad enough being the only gray haired wrinkled raisin of a human trying this dangerous sport which is made for maniacs under 25, I was being continually called "Goofy".
To use the rope pull to the top of the slope, regular riders face the rope and grasp it easily. Goofy riders have to have their back to the rope, twist their aged torso and hang on while their arm gets wrenched out of the socket. It took me several painful tries before I mastered that.

Matt and Asherel got quite good. We had to force Asherel off the mountain and pry the snowboard off her. This was difficult as by that time, I was so tired that even my fingernails ached.
"Why are we leaving?" she cried.
"Because as of yet we are uninjured," I answered, "And we have been here for 7 hours tempting fate."

I slept the whole drive home, though of course, with my eyes open since I was driving. This morning, I ache all over, but there are no bruises which is because the snow was so soft and slushy that it cushioned my falls. And I hope someday when my children are standing on the Olympic podium, collecting the Gold medal for their half pipe performance, they will remember fondly the aged mother riding goofy on a snowboard.

1 Thessalonians 3:5-7
...has just now come to us from you and has brought good news about your faith and love. He has told us that you always have pleasant memories of us and that you long to see us, just as we also long to see you.