Sledding, Skiing, and Snowboarding

            Father Winter has not come yet where I live. We wait and wait but here it is almost the middle of December and only two snow flurries have happened. It didn’t even stay on the ground till morning! I’ll admit I hate the icy winds and the snow that gets inside your hood as much as the next person but this is just unnatural. Without the snow, we’re missing out on all the fun of winter!

I’m not just talking about the holiday season fever of chestnut on a fire and hot coco. No, I’m talking about the best of winter without all that crazy shopping and eating. Winter is great for skiing as an example. Every winter hundreds upon thousands of people go up to the ski resort with some friends to have fun. They go back to the lodge or cafeteria cabin to drink something hot and rest after some fun on the slopes. Thump, thump, thump, their ski or snowboarding boots thud across the floor as a group of friends surge in to the warm lodge. Clumps of snow fall creating slush. Cherry red noses and smiling faces crowd around the fire or the food bar in the lodge. A person can tell who just walked in or has been there a while by how many layers of clothing they have on and how red their cheeks are. When the fun is over they walk back to their cars or wait for a shuttle. Jokes are passed around one last time and even though everyone is exhausted their eyes sparkle with happiness.

Another joy of winter is sledding. There’s no hard chair lift to get you to the top but it’s no less fun due to the extra work. It’s also less expensive if your wallet’s drained of money from Christmas shopping. Heck, even an old cardboard box and the perfect sledding slope with the right kind of snow and poof; a thrilling afternoon with your friends or kids. Even better than cardboard boxes, are inner tubes. They’ll shoot you down any hill faster than a bullet. If you’ve got the double inner tubes you can take a friend on a ride hollering all the way. Children screech with delight and parents laugh at their antics.

These are the joys of winter without the shopping craze, the tense family get togethers, and the disappointing present reveal. This is winter fun at its best.

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