A Lesson in Perseverance

Mom bought me ice skates for Christmas and since then I've only had the opportunity to use them twice, including yesterday. There are only a few times a week that public skating is offered around here, so we took advantage of it. Unfortunately, I really haven't skated in atleast 5 years. Mom held my hand and helped me get going, but I looked extremely scared and uncomfortable on my feet. Thankfully, Mom stayed next to me the entire time and helped me out in all of my near falling experiences. Although it was not looking as though I would be a pro skater anytime soon, I continued to try. I was determined to go around the rink on my own by the time the 2 hours were up. During the second hour, I successfully had myself on my feet with no problems. It was incredible! I was so excited to have reached my goal! As my ego grew, so did my skating abilities. During the last 30 seconds I decided I would prove my stuff and try to do some fancy foot work. At that moment, my ego crashed, I fell first on my knees, ended up on my stomach, and slid across the ice. With 24 seconds remaining, I fell for the first time all day. It was embarrassing, but I got right back up and realized that although we can persevere and accomplish our goals, we should never let our egos grow or else bumps will form in the ice.