Adult Sectionals Recap – Part 3
After our pairs event concluded, I had a few hours before the Championship Adult Gold Women event. I was surprisingly calm, with no nervous energy or anxiety. I was the 14th to skate (out of 21). Since my legs were already tired from practice ice and pairs earlier in the day, I took it easy on my warmup and simply skated around to keep my muscles limber.
Once the music started, I went on autopilot. I took each element one at a time, and this performance was a thousand percent better than the previous evening. My spins felt much better, and I even landed the first axel (although it was called as slightly underrotated).
After I got off the ice, a mother and her little girl came up to me. The mom said that her daughter wanted to tell me something. The young lady apparently was too shy to say anything, so the mother said, “My daughter wanted to tell you that you are her favorite. She wants to ask for your autograph.” I just about lost it. Since I didn’t have a pen or paper on me, I did what was next best. I asked my teammate and skating bestie to find me a tossie (that we had created) and I gave it to the little girl. Then, I asked her if I could give her a hug. She said yes, and I thanked her.
That was easily the highlight of my entire weekend. I skated to the best of my ability in that particular moment in time, and I controlled what was within my power.
Although I didn’t get the score or placement that I wanted, I skated and performed my heart out. And, it was enough to make one little girl’s day. That alone is worth more than any placement or medal.