The Rink

For Judith Wright the Mountain has its own meaning. Describe a favourite place that has a real meaning for you that you would hate to see destroyed.

There is a therapeutic like drug embedded into the soul of the rink. As I slide across the milky wonderland, gliding like a frog in clear waters, every last minuscule of tension is ridden from my body and absorbed into the ice. I circle mindlessly around and around and around again in a trance; lost in the cool thick air and lingering smell of canteen hot chips. As I loop around, my eyes are drawn up to the deteriorating cladding and thick condensation. I slowly drift my eyes to the run-down canteen and always vacant grandstand; both peeling in paint. The tight, bright blue unlevelled skates attached to me remain uncomfortable and damp, however, do not restrain me from propelling myself through the cold. As I glance around at what would appear to be a sombre wasteland to the naked eye; I find a rich beauty in the stories that it withholds. On my first lap, I think back to the many birthday parties I attended here as a child. The days of never-ending pieces of fairy bread and innocent giggles as we skated into our adolescent years. I think about these years on my second lap. I am brought back to my high school sport days where young love blossoms as couples remain interlocked around the rink and friendships are cemented as you help one another up from the harsh surface of the ice. The ice made these days seem so easy and smooth for an emotional adolescent, keeping our minds clear during what seemed to be such a foggy time. As I skate around for my third and final lap my mind shifts back to the present day. I had grown extremely fond of this beaten down old rink and it saddened me to think this could possibly be my last lap. As I came off the ice I returned my skates, packed my bag and made my way to the exit but not before signing a petition for the future of the ice rink and catching one last glimpse of my childhood. I couldn’t help but feel that if this rink is to go, then a part of me would with it too.

Feature Image: Ice Skating Rink taken from google images https://www.google.com/search?biw=1050&bih=585&tbm=isch&sxsrf=ACYBGNQNC4b_v7VAwsL8DKJtMQlUoMCBHA%3A1571201521211&sa=1&ei=8aGmXcmzDND2rQGPmIGwAw&q=ice+skating+rink&oq=ice+skating+rink&gs_l=img.3..35i39j0i67l2j0l7.15489.15489..16149…0.0..0.174.174.0j1……0….1..gws-wiz-img.7c9wCUe4wns&ved=0ahUKEwiJ8Krk_Z_lAhVQeysKHQ9MADYQ4dUDCAc&uact=5#imgrc=jGWhgtDgWc2lyM: