The last week
of October, the mountains east and west of my house are covered with snow. The
green grass, is all but covered with red and yellow leaves blown from my
neighbors Aspen Trees. This time of year with winter just around the
corner, brings memories of past winters.
I remember a
time back over Forty years ago, Thanksgiving morning. Mom said go and find
something to do, before we have dinner. Dad had gone with my younger brother to
Orem to pick-up my Grand-Dad. Who knows where my sister is, shes ten
years older than I am, so we are not in the same group of friends. My older
brother has gone hunting with his real dad, thats a story for
later.
I dug through
my closet and pulled out an old pair of Ice Skates. Tried them on. I just got
my feet in, last year for these skates. I got them at a yard sale a couple
years ago, Girl skates two sizes too big. Putting toilet paper in the toes for
the past two years now, I can just pull them over my ankles to squeeze them
on.
I put my
jacket on, tie the skates together, throw them over my shoulder. I run down the
stairs jumping the last four, headed for the front door, hear my mother call
out USE THE BACK DOOR!
Short hike to
Spring Pond, cutting through the neighbors yard, and climb on the
Back-hoe they are tearing down the house with, to build Condos. Snake along the
fence between the vacant lot and Rhondas house.
The pond sits
below a small hill, a stream from the Cottonwood's runs west and enters the
pond. All summer we fish and skinny dip in the pond; now with snow and the pond
frozen we can tube down the hill and Ice Skate the pond. This is my first time
to the pond this fall, the pond is not always frozen enough to skate by
Thanksgiving. Hope it is, if I go back home to soon I will be stuck helping
cook.
When I get to
the pond I can see someone sledding down the hill but cant tell who it
is. Theyre using one of those old wood sleds with the metal runners. I
stop and watch them slide down the hill a couple times, then go down to check
the ice.
As I reached
the pond I could hear a yell. I was unable to see anything until I got down to
the pond, I could not see the sled kid, but saw a hole in the ice. I ran down
to the pond, grabbed an old branch put on my skates. Jumped on the ice, skating
to the hole in the ice hearing the ice crack all the way. The closer to the
hole I get I can hear the cracking getting worse. This time of year the water
is only about Five or Six feet deep, I start to break through when I get about
ten feet from the hole I can see part of the sled and a hand through the hole.
I pull off my left skate start breaking through the ice, I keep chipping away a
few minutes seems like hours, everything is in slow motion. I get close enough
to push the branch in the hole, a hand grabs it, and a head pokes up. Its
my friend Shane, I pull him half-frozen from the water using the
branch.
He says
hey dont forget the sled, I cant lose it. So I put my
skate back on fish the branch through the sled runners and pull it out. Both
soaking wet we say at the same time I got to get home. We walk
together to the corner and then each go our own way; see you at school
Monday, I reply okay.