Ice doesn’t matter

By Emma Hofheimer

The conditions may be bad, but I’m still out shredding it up. No matter if the weather is ice or blizzards, it is a guarantee that I will be on the slopes. This season, it has been completely ice and we have only received three inches of snow this month, but what do I care? I am twelve years old and love to snowboard. If I break a bone, it is certainly going to heal. Any smart kid would be out there in a heartbeat, not caring if they get injured, because if you do not, you will regret it when you are 50. “Use your energy while you are young, because if you don’t, your kids will have to suffer through the pain of having to watch you fail miserably, when it comes to getting off the chair lift.” Something my old man said to me when I commented on how long it took for him to stand up from the chair.

Today when I was boarding down Solitude, I hit a huge patch of ice, fell smack on my butt and then proceeded to slide 15 feet before I finally came to a stop. Sure I was thinking, “Ugh, this sucks! I’m in pain,” But then, when I saw this six year old, fall, stand up and keep going, I thought, “Hey! If he can do that, then I totally can.” So I got up, kept going and then had a blast on Facelift afterwards. I do not worry about slipping on ice or getting stuck in deep powder. If you think that it makes you look like a wuss, if and when it does happen, just remember, you look really tough if you stand up and keep moving forward.

  -Emma Hofheimer, 12, lives in L.A. 

Finally, an explanation of the opposite column. On Tuesday, I was worried about having enough material to fill the paper so my friend Josh’s daughter Emma told me she would write a small essay for me.

Sure, I thought. Promises, promises.

An hour later, the essay arrived in my mailbox. Nice follow through. That kid’s going places.