I felt my lungs inflate with the onrush of scenery—air, mountains, trees, people. I thought, "This is what it is to be happy.” - Sylvia Plath
I fell once again and got whipped into the snow harder. I was on bended knee as I listened to my instructor. Ok, I got it. He was pretty strict actually, I could still hear him saying “bend your knees, look to the right, lift your toes, back straight, open your arms, what did I tell you! He was pretty good actually that I found myself sliding right to left and back after just a couple of minutes.
It was my first time snowboarding and it was the only reason I traveled to the south of Chile. I was in a hurry as I heard they were closing some slopes due to lack of snow. The season was ending. I was volunteering in the equipment shop of the ski resort for a couple of hours in exchange for snowboarding. I got a free season pass, free use of all the equipment and free lunch. Yeah, it was a sweet deal. There was really nothing much to do in the end, so I just took my time to learn how to snowboard.
My ex-boyfriend told me once that snowboarding was difficult for him when he first tried it in Ukraine. But when I tried snowboarding in Chile, I actually managed to slide on my own and I found it not that hard. Well, I’m not a pro for sure and I couldn’t jump or do some tricks yet, but for a first-timer, I thought I was not that bad. Perhaps, it was due to my other sports like surfing and longboarding. I just love boards.
And without my instructor who really taught me the proper way, I guess I would not have done it all by myself by just watching youtube and renting a snowboard. I kind of understand why he was really strict with me because that really helped me learned fast. He was actually proud of his product.
I fell again and again. I ate the snow, I hit the black parts of the ground, I had a hard wipe out, I experienced pain. But it was all like a painful pleasure. At first, it felt weird not being able to stand up easily like when I fell off my longboard, and I had to do this roll thing. But it was all good, I felt the rush. And I was officially stoked!
One morning, I saw this fox hanging around the area. The crowd started taking pictures and all, but the fox remained surprisingly. It couldn’t be bothered. I stared at it once more, wondering why was it here. I looked at it for a while trying to make something out of its presence. The fox looked strange and lonely. Just sitting there, observing, looking around, curious and not fitting in.
I was starting to feel bored at the equipment shop with nothing else to do, so I went to the chair lift to find some other work. And I met the guys who work here who were obviously more fun to work with than the girls at the equipment shop who just talked about the guys they went out with last night. I guess I was not too interested in some small-town talk during those boring hours. I was not feeling very good to be around here actually, and the girls didn’t really like me. I only wish that I have more female friends, but whenever I gave myself a chance, they just completely baffled me.
Although the South of Chile is very beautiful, it has the ambiance of being 'The United States of South America', and the 'we are better than the rest' mentality. This is why their South American neighbors are really not a fan of their country. I met a few good friends here to be fair, and they really helped me while I was on the road. But traveling in Chile also made me understand where the rest is coming from.
I was not feeling good about the people during the final weeks of my travel I felt the need to end my snowboarding stint. Honestly, I was addicted to this sport and I wanted to snowboard more. I almost bought a snowboard, but I’m glad I didn’t yet. I fought this another impulsive buying. Buy an expensive snowboard for what, to drag it on the road along with my longboard while I go travel to tropical countries after?
I didn’t need my instructor anymore and I had his blessing to go on my own. I remember the first time I had to take the chair-lift alone, I was pretty nervous. The altitude, the blinding white around me, the huge slope, it was pretty intimidating.
The last week, I made the decision to just snowboard all day and say goodbye afterward. So I took the snowboard and headed to the chairlift. I looked at the scenery around me, it was a sight to behold. It surely felt powerful being out there on my own.
I felt this adrenaline rush, that moment when you didn’t have to think about anything else. What made me feel tired made me feel good. There was no time to worry about the people, the fox, my travel and everything else. It was the moment that only mattered. Those endorphins surely triggered a positive feeling. I fell hard again at some point, and it was ok. But as soon I got the hang of sliding left to right and turning, it was such an amazing feeling. I was happy.
I was really grateful that I got to try snowboarding finally. I will definitely snowboard more in the future, and of course, I would be willing to buy my own snowboard and all the cool gear.
I knew the feeling was not going to last so I went up the slope again and again. I snowboard as if it was my last. Those times when I had to surf, or longboard where the times that I wanted to feel good and get away from it all. When I didn’t like everyone around me, all I had to do was pick up a board and go after the rush. This time, I wished I could do this forever. Maybe in another place and time.
I returned everything and said goodbye to everyone. I just couldn’t stay anymore. I knew that I had to go and move on. I still had a lot of places to visit ahead of me.
I breathed in the cold air, felt the snow, and looked at the magnificent landscape around me for the last time. I looked around and the fox was not there anymore...
The fox was me.
