She eyed me skeptically. “Is there a difference?”
“Yes,” I said. “And you’re doing fine.”
She tried again, moving more cautiously this time. She made it halfway down the hill before losing her balance and slidingdirectly into me. I caught her instinctively, my board skidding slightly as we both steadied ourselves.
“I’m so sorry,” she said immediately, trying to pull back.
“It’s fine,” I replied, keeping my hands lightly on her arms. “You didn’t break anything.”
She laughed, embarrassed but smiling. “Yet.”
Behind us, Lydia fell again, laughing loudly. Jane boarded past her with encouragement. Lucy sighed in frustration but stayed upright as she windmilled her arms while passing a much slower Meri.
And Kitty, despite all the distraction, stood back up and tried again.
By the time we moved farther down the beginner slope, Lydia had discovered speed.
Not control and certainly not balance. Just speed.
“I think I’m getting it,” she called over her shoulder, already accelerating.
“Lydia, slow down,” I said calmly, because yelling rarely helped and usually encouraged exactly the opposite behavior.
She didn’t slow down.
Jane laughed, graceful even as she eased herself to a stop.
“You might want to move,” she suggested to Kitty, who was still carefully repositioning her board further down the slope and didn’t realize she was in danger.
“Lydia,” Lucy snapped. “Brake!”
“Fall in the snow!” I called out as I boarded down towards them.
Lydia attempted something that might have been a turn and instead became an enthusiastic diagonal slide across the slope.
Kitty looked up just in time to react. She shifted her weight instinctively, trying to avoid the collision, but the snow betrayed her. Her board caught, twisted, and sent her sideways directly into Lydia’s path.
They collided in a flurry of arms, legs, and snow, landing in a heap at the bottom of the slope.
“I’m okay,” Kitty said immediately, though she was still lying flat on her back.
“This was excellent,” Lydia declared, laughing as she tried to sit up and failed. “Did you see how fast I went?”
Lucy fell into the snow to stop her slide downhill near us. “I am begging you to take this seriously.”
I crouched beside them, and offered a hand to Kitty first. She accepted it quickly, brushing snow from her jacket with embarrassed efficiency as I helped her to her feet.
“I’m really sorry,” she said. “I keep getting in the way.”
“You’re not in the way,” I told her. “You’re exactly where you’re supposed to be.”
She looked unconvinced but nodded.
Lydia rolled onto her knees and grinned. “I think I should go again.”
“No,” Lucy said flatly.
Jane smiled. “Maybe after a short break.”
