The Wolf Pack of Westby

Laura and I didn't sled in our driveway very long Sunday morning. I'd promised my phone stalker, Tiggy, that we'd come in and share the sledding with her. The day was gorgeous and the snow was pristine as we stopped off at her house to pick her up. First we sledded down the road by my mom's house, but the girls wanted to go to the premier sledding hill in town, which happens to be right by the cemetery.

As the owner of the royal sled and as the responsible adult, of course I tried out the track first for quality and safety verification. I verified an adequate measure of safety (and if anything went wrong, the cemetery was right there) and decent quality. But to be sure, I tried several different runs...several different times. Testing wind speeds and the like.

"Aunty! Let us have a turn!!!!!!"

"OK, girls. I'm just going to do one more run and then you can have it."

I got a running head start and slid down the hillside. I began to slow well before I reached the row of bushes at the bottom of the hill, but scraped myself along with my hands until I could go no further. The girls were little specks at the top of the hill.

"OK, girls. Your turn."

I headed back towards the house, leaving the sled at the furthest reaches of a snowy field. Shouts of outrage burst forth behind me. I began to run. A serious error in strategy became apparent very quickly. The hillside as a whole had a very nice crust on it, but right by the bushes the snow was deep and soft. I sank in with every step, all the while listening to the baying of outraged girlhood coming ever closer. I felt the panic of a deer pursued by a ravenous wolf pack.

My only hope lay in the fact that they would reach the soft snow before they reached me. If I could only keep going, I'd make it to the road first and from there to safety. I just had to outlast them. Yeah right. They're in their youth and I am in my 30's. I was close, almost within arm's reach of the road before I collapsed on the snow. I was dog-piled within seconds.


After the girls released me, I went back to my parents' house while the girls kept sledding. They spent most of the afternoon out there and were at it again the next day after school got out until sunset. I had to drag them back in. It's a good thing we had our fun then because the last few days have been hard if you're a snow flake. We've had temps in the high thirties and the snow is melting FAST! There are vast lakes around town and when you walk through snow your footsteps fill with water as if you were at the beach (only a colder, whiter beach where you wear lots of clothes). It's starting to look and feel decidedly spring like.