Skylar's March Post

    My dad had finally found work. We made the big move to Vancouver just a few days ago. Being from California, all this snow is going to take some getting used to! My family said this move is for the “greater good”, but the way I see it? It just stinks. Canada is cold and boring. There is nothing to do here. I decided to go for a walk while my parents were dusting their antique basketball knick knacks (don’t ask) and the cold was literally unbearable. I could feel the cold in my bones as I walked down the street, even though I was wearing three shirts, two jackets and a scarf!  I was lost in a freezing stupor when I met them. The kids were playing a game that looked familiar, but I’d never actually seen played. Hockey. I watched but couldn’t tell what was going on. I’m a basketball guy. I’ve never been interested in hockey. What I could piece together  looked pretty straight forward to me. The kids were trying to hit a disk into the opposing goal with sticks, all while on ice skates. It only took a minute before they were colliding into each other and crashing to the ground trying to hit the puck. “Shouldn’t that be a foul?” I called out across the frozen lake. The game stopped. About four sets of eyes stared at me like I was on fire. Like I was dumb. Like I didn’t know the rules (I didn’t). All I knew was basketball, and in basketball, any one of those hits would get you disqualified for a season.

    “Look, it’s the new kid. What’s his name? John?” one of the kids finally yelled out, putting an end to the awkward silence. “It’s James, not John,” I yelled back. And with that, they skated over to me...