Skiing, or not, as the case may be.

Could have learned how to ski here

If I had known when I was five years old that I was going to have daughters who could ski so well, I would have right away at that time asked my parents to get me some skis and a teacher and get me learning how to downhill ski if they could have afforded it. 

Well, sadly I did not, and sadly I can not ski downhill.  

I don't know why I didn't learn.  One of my older sisters learned and she had great times going on ski weekends with her friends. She loved it. I don't think she does it now though, but probably because she lives in an area of a state which doesn't have much downhill, maybe cross country. I don't think her son learned how to ski.  So maybe it wouldn't have helped to have learned how to ski when I was five.  Maybe not.

Five? Yes five.  If there are three things you should get your kids to do as soon as possible in life it is in this order:  start learning a second language,  eat and like fruits and vegetables, and if you live in a state which gets winter or you are near mountains, teach them to ski and ice skate.  (Fourth would be to get them to learn to play a musical instrument or sing).  

Swimming is a close second, but if there is one thing which is great to do with the family as a family outing in winter it is skiing or ice skating.  Ice skating is probably better, because you can hold hands and skate together or play chase or mess around on the ice.  But it is only an hour or so outing.  

Skiing is an all day family event, if not a full weekend or EVEN a full on winter week holiday.

I think I have mentioned it before, but my one daughter started skiing when she was three.  The other started when she was four.  This is about the right time to get them going.  We tried to get the second daughter started at two years old but it was a bit premature.

 She just stood there crying on her skis and wanted her mother to help her and help her take the skis off. I think she went up the pulley a hundred yards once or twice.  Anyway, she was ready at four.  Now she is six, just two years later and she is going down pretty big hills by herself and not falling. She is skiing well. The older one is not Ester Ledecka ... yet,  but is a little ski devil who doesn't need any help.  Now they are skiing down hills like these pictured.  

It is really a great shared family activity.  Its not that you allgo down together and hold hands, but skiing downhill just pumps up your adrenaline a lot.  It is a natural high, and you know that everyone feels the same so that when you get to the bottom of the hill you are all smiling and you know why. You all are sharing in the excitement, even though it is not a team sport. At the end of the day, probably for the rest of your life, you can talk about "going down that one time" or "that one hill" or that one time it was icy, or...  all the shared downhill skiing experiences in your memory, memories, collectively.   Its a great bond for the entire family.  

Except for those who don't know how to ski.  

I know what you are saying.  You are saying, "well remedy the situation and learn how to ski.  Its never too late."   Well, no its never too late for some people and for some things, but believe you me, it would be easier to get skis on a horse and teach IT how to downhill ski than me.  Really. 

So where was Daddy today when Mom and the two girls were bonding skiing downhill?  I went off on a hike up the hill on the green line. I did around 10 kilometers in three hours up the mountain and back down.  I didn't bond with anyone, not even Mother Nature.  I was alone with my thoughts walking through the snow.  I was composing and going over a book I am writing which takes place a lot in the winter.  And I was thinking about this post on bonding doing downhill skiing and me not bonding walking through the woods.  By myself.  

Dads, if you can not go back in time and learn how to ski when you were five years old, I strongly recommend you try to learn now and take the whole family skiing.  Either that or go sledding all together.  That is pretty good too.   We will do that some weekend and then I wont be able to compose any post when I am doing that because the adrenaline will be soaring.  

 C`mon, the NFL season is done, get off your tushes and get outside with the whole family.