The chill of the ice, the echoing of the pucks, and the cheering of the fans is a feeling I will never forget. Ever since I could remember, I have had a special liking for the Red Wings. I haven’t quite put my finger on what it is that draws me towards this team and its sport, but I cannot seem to turn down an opportunity to go see the Red Wings play, especially when my dad offers me tickets unexpectedly.

On a chilly Monday morning, my dad called and said, “Julia, I have something to tell you,” in his deep and serious voice. I could feel the blood rushing up my veins because of how nervous I was. I felt like he could hear my pounding heart through the phone. Was I in trouble for talking to a boy? Did he lose his job? Was it a new puppy that I had been asking for since I was a naïve 3-year old? I just didn’t know. Unfortunately, he persisted on not telling me what the big secret was until he got home. So, patiently yet anxiously, I waited on my coffee-colored couch at the edge of my seat, nervously scratching my fingernails against the soft cushion. 

After what had felt like hours, I looked for anything that would distract me until he got home. While scrolling with my clammy fingers through Instagram, liking pictures not meant to be liked, I heard screeching coming from our old and rusty garage door. It was then I knew that my dad was home. His heavy steps in his large snow boots pounding on the floor was overwhelming. As he was walking through the door, I noticed footprints made of water trailing behind him on our shiny wood floor. I shot up from my seat and ran up to him. He sat me down and told me that he had something for me. Thankfully, I knew that I wasn’t in any trouble because of his huge grin spread across his face. However, he also didn’t have anything in his hands. “What could it be?” I thought. Out of his old, ripped jeans from Costco, he pulled out an envelope that got caught on the loose thread hanging out of his pocket. I chuckled a bit and so did he. “He’s in a good mood!” I said to myself with a weight lifted off of my shoulders.

I opened the envelope to find Red Wings tickets! First, of course, I looked at what section we would be sitting in, which at that point was my only concern because I am such a die-hard fan. I darted upstairs and scrambled through my backpack to find my laptop so that I could look up where exactly I would be sitting. It was devastating to find out that I was going to be sitting in the highest seats in the house, the suites. It was a luxury suite, but I wished to be closer so I could feel the energy flying off the ice. Unappreciative about my seats, I shoved the books along with papers from school, some gum wrappers, and my tangled up headphones in my drawer and laid the ripped up envelope there.

Days passed and it was the day of the game. I wasn’t the most excited person, but on the bright side, I got to see the cutest player of them all, Dylan Larkin. His curly and bushy hair, his bright personality, and oh my, I could go on and on about him. Anyways, what seemed to feel like a dreadful 10 minutes of going up the steep stairs at the Joe Louis Arena, I finally arrived to my suite. The first thing I saw was the bright red seats almost as red as a fire truck. I sat in my cushioned seat and looked down to see how high up I was. As I was going to sit down, a tall man and his chubby-faced son by his side, quickly tapped me on my shoulder. “How would you like to ride the Zamboni?” he said. I bolted to my mom to confirm my decision to go and gratefully, she agreed. My heart dropped and I could feel my blood rushing up again as I went to follow him down the stairs to go down to the ice.

“May I have your Zamboni pass please?” asked the beautiful Red Wings model with her gleaming short skirt and sparkling high heels. I gave her my pass with shaking hands as if I was shivering in the cold. I had never been more excited in my life! I stepped onto the Zamboni with light grey smoke steaming behind it, and it started to move! Slowly but surely I got onto the ice and slid as if I was going down the biggest slide in the waterpark as a 4 year-old. It was the most amazing feeling of my life. All I could see was the vibrant color red, I could hear were the fans cheering me on, and it was a blur after that, and that is how happy I was. I wasn’t so ungrateful anymore.
The Zamboni ride came to an end, and I got to sit down at the first row closest to the glistening ice. I came to realize that I shouldn’t have complained when I first found out that I was going to be sitting in the highest seats in the house. Because if I didn’t, I wouldn’t have been able to experience such an unforgettable moment in my life. Sometimes, good outcomes come from the times that may not seem to be the most exciting, which is another reason to always keep your head held high and enjoy the moments while they last.