The Senses

I have no idea who reads my blog these days. I haven't seen a comment that wasn't spam for a while now but that's ok I guess. I'll just keep writing...

I'm in Winnipeg playing hockey right now. I'm competing with the Killarney Knights, the women's team I play for in Vancouver, for the Western Canadian Championship right now. It's pretty exciting and at this point we have secured a spot in the gold medal game tomorrow. If we win, we will be the first BC representative to win the Senior A Western Canadian Champs title. Whoa.

There's something about this game that people won't understand unless they have a passion for it. The sights... the sounds... the sensual ride of it all. Now...I mean sensual not in a way related to sex like most people use that word. I just mean it as... all your senses are working in ways they don't normally do. Sometimes my adrenaline is going so hard I'm shaking. Sometimes I don't even hear people yelling at me (which isn't always good on the ice) as I'm so focused on what I'm doing at that moment. Sometimes you don't even feel pain until after the game is over. Sometimes you want the puck so badly that it's all you care about and you're willing to sacrifice your body into the boards for it. Some parts of the senses are heightened, and others are lessened. It's intense.

And I love it.

Today, there was a moment where the line on the ice came skating to the bench for a fast line change. As they came they brought a wave of wind with them and a slight spray of ice as they stopped at the bench to get in. I felt it hit my face and neck and just had a crazy moment where I just simply enjoyed how much I love this game. It was awesome. And our team really felt like a team today. Cheering each other on as we saw each other make the right plays and be consistent. Watching some players step up and play better than they usually do. Seeing our teammates succeed on the ice and being proud to be on their team. It's hard to not feel alive in times like that, as cheesy as that may sound.

All this thought about senses reminds me of when I was a kid... Dad used to make an ice rink for us kids on the farm and everyday after school I would get off the bus and hurry inside to get ready to go on the ice before it got too dark to see anything. And I would just play around. Just me, skates, stick, and a puck. I love the sound of skates on ice... the sound of a puck hitting a stick...the feeling through your knees as you glide... I love the cold wind in my face (most of the time). My eyes would get accustomed to the dark after a while and I would stay out as long as I could. I remember sometimes I would accidentally shoot the pucks over the "boards" as they were only a few inches high and then have to crawl out on the road... maybe climb over the wire fence even and dig for my puck in a snowbank with my skates on. I'd make my way back to ice and just keep going. That was before I cared if my blades had nicks or chips... :) Mind you, my skates were old used ones from my brother and most of my sticks were old, cracked, and taped together. Some of my pucks were even more like mangled balls of rubber. That's grassroots hockey. That's my childhood.

Oh I love it. I truly do. The good and the bad.

This post may seem strange to you, but like I said you may not understand it all. All I'm saying is... the senses... one of the reasons I love this game.