Brushing Up

It was freezing cold in there. When you went to your bedroom, you practically had to run, or else you’d freeze. Because the big, dark house had only one large tiled stove in the living room, where you could warm your feet as soon as you walked in. We were sitting there with as many as six adult couples and their children, one of whom was me.

I’m talking about Cämmerswalde. That’s where I went with my parents and their friends when I was about seven or eight years old. On a winter sports vacation. Back in “our” day, that still meant we went cross-country skiing. Because there weren’t really that many high mountains. And I don’t think there were any lifts either. And you’ve got to do something with meters of snow when you’re on vacation.

It felt like we walked through the snow for hours and hours. Then we’d finally stop at the next little cabin where we could put our gloves on the heater. It was probably because of my short legs, but those were tough hikes. Still, they were beautiful.

My parents still have their skis, and if there’s enough snow in the forests around Berlin, they just head out again.

Last Monday I thought: surely we can do that here, too. On Sunday, a number of cross-country skiing clubs had already gathered for beautiful trips through the Utrecht forests, and they were even spotted in the city. So it was obvious that I should give it another try.

And I could still do it! Not in a competitive way, but just going straight ahead. And still: I didn’t fall over, and after a while I was even able to pick up some speed.

And it went well even through the city ;-).