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It really wasn’t much of a hill. It was a gentle slope, but it was more than enough for two young girls who had never stepped into ski boots before. Laila was careful and hesitant, but Cora pushed off the ground with her poles and started down the hill with all the speed that the gradual decline would allow.
I jumped to my feet and started to follow her down the hill, but Fredrick stuck out an arm to stop me.
“This is how she learns not to go too fast,” he said.
“She’s going to run into someone. Or hit a tree or something. I need to stop her.”
“She needs to learn to listen. She was hardly paying attention.”
“She is three years old. She doesn’t know how to listen.”
“Then she shouldn’t be out here,” he said with a haughty tone.
“Maybe you’re right, but she is, and I need to make sure she doesn’t get hurt or injure someone else.”
Fredrick dropped his arm to his side with a sigh of exasperation, and I started walking down the hill again. It was really such a gentle decline that it only took me a moment to catch up to her, but when she saw me, the tears started to flow.
“Daddy! I’m scared!”
“I’m right here, baby. You’re doing a great job. Do you remember how to stop?”
She shook her head frantically.
“Turn your skis into a pizza. Point your toes towards each other.”
She tried to follow my directions, but her little legs didn’t quite have the strength.
“Daddy! Help!”
“Cora, I’m right here. Try again. Make a pizza with your skis. You can do it.”
She used all her strength to point her skis towards each other, and she came to a very slow stop. I reached out and caught her just before her face landed in the snow.
I popped her boots out of the skis and picked her up. She wrapped her little arms around my neck and started to sob. I helped her get her helmet and goggles off, and then carried her back up the hill where Laila was watching us intently and Fredrick was scoffing at my approach to parenting.
“I don’t think we’ll be needing your services anymore, Fredrick. Thanks for your time.”
He scoffed again and took off without another word. Laila followed Cora and I back to the bench where I had been sitting. Cora still hadn’t moved from her position on my shoulder, and Laila was working her hardest to travel uphill with her skis and poles.
“You were so brave, Cora,” I said as I sat down. “I’m so proud of you.”
“Yeah, Cora, you did great,” Laila echoed.
“I don’t want to ski anymore,” Cora said between sobs.
“Alright, we can be done for today, but I want you to try again tomorrow, okay? I’ll be right by your side the whole time.”
She nodded her head, but I knew it was going to take a lot of convincing to get her back into her boots.
I helpedLaila get out of her skis, and we made our way back to the main lodge. Of course, when we entered, Skye and a few of her nieces and nephews were sitting near the fireplace. She looked to be having a very intense discussion with them, and I hesitated for a moment before I decided to approach them.
She glanced over as we walked across the large sitting area, and she did a double take when she saw that it was the three of us, with Cora still dangling around my neck. Her face suddenly got very solemn when she saw the state that Cora was in. Though she was no longer crying, her eyes were puffy and her face was splotchy and red.
“Cora? What happened?” Skye asked, standing to meet her eyes. “Is she okay?”
“The girls had their first ski lesson and, well, it didn’t go great.”
“Oh no, I’m so sorry,” she said, gently rubbing Cora’s back.
