Viewing re-plays of the recent Olympic figure skating competition transports me back to long hours I spent practicing at the Iceland rink as a teenager. Then, I had an unbundled amount of energy,
endless stamina, and an undying determination to succeed. My coach referred to me as a “natural” when I
so gracefully skated. Since then, my
older years have sucked most of that energy and diminished the majority of skills I
once possessed—mainly because the competitive level achievements ironically
deteriorated my skeletal structures over time. Even though I
can still feel the required movements when I review them in my mind, my physical
body can no longer properly execute them.
My children have watched me gather speed along the ice on a few
occasions (like in the photo displayed here), witnessing strength in spins and my favorite (flip) jump—which I
still do off the ice, constantly.
But,
oh! How I wish my children could have been by my side, to observe me back then…because I wonder how
it would change their perception of me now.
