Eileen went to her very first roller skating party yesterday. Eileen has been asking for roller skates for about 9 months now. I've kindly suggested she wait to try skating before making such a purchase. I've also tried to point out the financial wisdom of simply renting skates at the skate center.
Eileen is not known for her risk-taking or physicality (other than being flexible). She frequently refuses to do things independently or go familiar places by herself -- including the bathroom from her bedroom.
As I drove Eileen to the skate center she was buzzing with energy. This was the moment she had been waiting her whole life to experience. The roller skating center did not smell of shoe leather, sweat, and popcorn. It lacked gaudy carpeting. Other than that, roller skating rinks have not changed much since the 80s when I skated to Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the USA." Because it was a Saturday afternoon, it was significantly less crowded than a school skating party.
I helped Eileen with her skates. Her friend, Lucy, was equally excited to get out on the floor.
I barely turned around for a second and the two of them were out on the rink. No adults. They were just going for it.
God only knows how many times they fell before they made it to the wall. It was slow going, but they made it around the rink. We tried to get her wheels tightened by the screws were stripped. Undeterred, Eileen kept at it. I took my life into my own hands, took off my shoes, and went around the rink once in my socks, holding her hand. Eileen barely wanted to stop for food or cake before getting back out on the rink.
She had it fairly well figured out by the end.
Eileen was super proud of herself. I told her I was proud of the way she didn't give up even though it was hard. Linus was at a skating party the previous weekend and did not have quite the same level of grit. Knowing that she did better at her initial attempt at roller skating than Linus set her on cloud nine. They may be a competitive edge to her yet.
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