The Support a Community Offers
The music stopped. We froze. My lungs gasped for air and my legs burned as I stood up from my final position. Curtsying to the judges and then to the crowd, a thick blanket of disappointment enveloped our team despite loud cheers booming from the stands.
We dropped our arms simultaneously and shuffled across the ice to the kiss-and-cry platform. I could feel the sharp breaths of my teammates as shaky nerves swirled in the air all around us.
We smiled and nodded as the loudspeaker broadcasted our score, concealing our defeat. We had dropped ten points.
Back in the bright, cold-lit locker room, we rushed to pull our skates off and change into dark leggings. Tears and sniffles crept into conversation.
Ten minutes later, our team had settled in the bleachers to watch the remaining groups in the division. Two of my friends and I ran to buy some water. We waded through the bustling noisy stands to the vendors across the arena.
On our way, a tall mother with golden highlighted hair pushed towards us from the other direction and waved. Was this stranger waving at us? She held the hand of a little girl that peeked from behind her leg.
Confused but curious, I smiled back at her.
The little girl dropped her mother's hand and picked up her pace to approach us. She held out a large blue competition flyer, and asked, looking up at us, “Can you sign this for me?”
As I picked up the glossy paper and red pen from her hands, amazement and disbelief flooded me. I would have never imagined experiencing this. It reminded me of the devotion that my team and I had poured into this sport, and how it had taken us this far.
The girl’s grin as I handed the paper back to her sent a surge of confidence over me. Her smile symbolized the support from the audience, a crucial part of the skating community that had always helped me build my courage.
With cold new water bottles in hand, my friends and I now made our way back through the groups of competitors and families standing around and filling aisles. Spotting two skaters with Australian flags in their buns, I rummaged through my pocket, and found the small USA flags that were designated for trading. I tugged on my friends' arm. “Let's trade with them!” I gestured towards the two skaters.
“Yeah, I don’t have an Australian flag yet,” one piped in.
With flags in our hands, we changed courses, cutting through a group of parents and made our way to the two girls in white uniforms. Holding out our miniature red, white, and blue flag, I approached them, “Can we trade flags?”
They nodded, eagerly smiling, and plucked dark blue flags from their buns to exchange for ours.
“Thank you so much!” I stuck the Australian flag in my own bun. “And good luck on your skate tomorrow,” I wished them well.
“You too!” the girl with blonde hair replied.
Before I could start walking again, the other girl added, “You guys looked amazing today! Good luck!”
My face broke out into a smile, “Thank you so much!”
Turning around to follow my friends, my heart felt excited and warm. Their simple words of encouragement refreshed my confidence. It strengthened me for the next day's performance.
Breathe in… Breathe out…
Back in the locker room, we huddled, arms around each other’s backs. In ten minutes, we would take the ice for our long program.
“We’ve already spent so many hours practicing this program," a teammate across the circle started. “There’s nothing to worry about. Just have fun, smile, and perform!”
“Skate from your heart,” another teammate added. We all reached an arm into the circle. “Three, two, one!” she counted down. Together, we raised our arms and yelled, letting our anxiety go.
Energy invigorated me. My heart beat with excitement and that replaced my nervousness. The words of my teammates reminded me of how far we had already come. Endless hours had been devoted to practice. It paid off.
Lined up behind the rink entrance, my friend and I squeezed each other's hands.
“We’re ready,” she affirmed.
I nodded, “I can’t wait.”
A volunteer opened the entrance for us, and the crowds started cheering. Each of us stepped onto the ice one after another. A confident air surrounded us, and now we all felt more ready than ever.
We had made it onto the international ice in Rouen, France!
Conclusion
The skating community’s most precious trait is its unwavering ability to support one another and lift each other up. The audience, other teams, and my own teammates all played a crucial role in building a supportive and crucial network. When we encourage each other, we find ourselves full of confidence and hope.