The Moments I Live For

Nonstop training, hard work, and dedication, but nothing compares to the real moment.  As I step onto the slippery, cold surface, I anticipate the next four minutes.  All the hours I have put into the sport, but none of that matters anymore.  I have four minutes to make it all count.  This is the real deal.  People all around me are yelling my name, ready to cheer me on, but I hear none of it.  An entire audience and panel of judges are staring right at me, watching my every move, but I do not even notice.  I am completely focused and determined, and nothing can change that.  I am 100% in the moment, ready to skate my heart out.  My name is finally called and I take the ice with a huge smile across my face.  It is my turn to show everyone what I am made of.  As I wait for my music to begin, I feel the adrenaline rushing through my body.  Two seconds feels like an eternity as I wait for my music to begin.  This is the moment I have trained so hard for and I am as prepared as I can be.  My smile is radiating throughout the rink as I perform.  I go from element to element focusing on one thing at a time.  One jump landed, but there is no time to be overly excited, I must focus on what is coming next.  I continue to complete elements in my program and draw closer to the end of my program knowing that I have done everything I can do.  The smile cannot be wiped off my face as I bow to the judges and skate off the ice knowing that I have done my best.  After getting off the ice, my coach gives me a huge huge hug and I can tell she is proud of me.  I impatiently and anxiously wait for the results to come up and when they finally do, to my surprise, I have won!  The feeling cannot be put into words.  However, it was not the feeling of winning that made me so ecstatic, it was the feeling of not only hard work paying off, but being able to compete, to share my passion, and most of all, to just do what I love, skate.  These are the moments I live for.