One Goal
Part One - I Wonder
PART ONE: I WONDER
“Hawks win! Hawks win! Hawks win!” Pat Foley shouted from the flat screen in my basement. It was a familiar sound that I loved to hear. This time it was number 88, Patrick Kane, who had scored the game winning goal. Not only had the goal won the game, but it was his third goal of the night, giving him his second career hat trick. “Hattie for Pattie!“ I had screamed obnoxiously as soon as he scored. I was so excited for the Hawks. I was so excited for Kaner.
“Be quiet Destiny, Dad’s in bed!” my mom warned me. She was right, so I reluctantly shut up after the goal. Both my parents worked, but my dad had a carpentry job that was a bit of a drive away, so he always had to get up at 3 am to get to work on time. This meant an early bedtime for him which for my mom and I meant we had to be quiet once 8 pm hit.
I decided to have a celebratory bowl of ice cream, so I slipped upstairs silently. I turned on the porch light to see extra large snowflakes falling to the ground. The snow widened my smile that I was still wearing from the win. It was January after all, and there hadn’t been all that much snow in December, which was upsetting to me. As much as I enjoyed the warmth of summer, winter had always been so beautiful to me. Although it wasn’t very attractive when it melted and turned slushy, I loved the sparkling look of a fresh snowfall.
After a moment of watching the snow, I went back to getting a cool snack. I spooned three scoops of vanilla ice cream into a bowl and added a little bit of caramel and black and red sprinkles to match the Kane jersey I was wearing. Yes, Kane was my favorite player. With such a great team, especially this year, it was hard to choose a favorite player, but I had chosen Patrick Kane as mine. I guessed it was a combination of his skills on the ice, his determination, and yes, his looks, that helped me choose. I did have a bit of a crush on him, but so what?
After eating my ice cream, I reluctantly pulled my jersey off and handed it over to my mom. It was in great need of a washing, especially with another Hawks game coming up in two days. One day too late to be a birthday game for me. Of course, once again, there was a game the day before and the day after my birthday (January 5), but not exactly on it. The one year there had been a game on the exact day, it was an away game. I had been dreaming of going to a game for my birthday for years, but to my dismay, it hadn’t happened yet and it wasn’t going to happen for this exciting 20th birthday of mine.
As disappointed about this as I was, I was still very excited for my birthday bash, which was happening the next day. Apparently my family and friends had something planned for me. It wasn’t necessarily a surprise party, because they told me that they were doing something for me, and I knew we were going to Chicago for it. However, I still had no idea what we could possibly be doing. A shopping trip to all my favorite stores? A nice dinner at Hard Rock or Rainforest? I was clueless. I was still thrilled, though, even before it happened. Chicago was my favorite place to be. I loved everything about it, and I was determined to move there after I got done with school. No matter what their plans were for me, I was sure I would enjoy it.
“I’m going to bed, Destiny. Don’t forget to set your alarm before you go to bed, we’re leaving at 10 am!” my mom reminded me when I was almost done eating my ice cream. Oh yeah. I had to wake up early on my birthday, the one day I would have loved to sleep in the most. Just the extra sleep would have been a good enough gift, but I knew I wasn’t getting it. I stayed up just a little longer to watch the post game footage of the players and Coach Q, and then I finally decided to go to bed. Tomorrow would be a long, exciting day, and I needed to get some rest. When I finally did get to bed, though, I was like a little kid on Christmas Eve, and it took what felt like hours for me to fall asleep. When I finally got exhausted enough, I drifted off into a deep sleep in which I dreamt of being at the Hawks game and meeting every player, including my favorite.
“Hawks win! Hawks win! Hawks win!” Pat Foley shouted from the flat screen in my basement. It was a familiar sound that I loved to hear. This time it was number 88, Patrick Kane, who had scored the game winning goal. Not only had the goal won the game, but it was his third goal of the night, giving him his second career hat trick. “Hattie for Pattie!“ I had screamed obnoxiously as soon as he scored. I was so excited for the Hawks. I was so excited for Kaner.
“Be quiet Destiny, Dad’s in bed!” my mom warned me. She was right, so I reluctantly shut up after the goal. Both my parents worked, but my dad had a carpentry job that was a bit of a drive away, so he always had to get up at 3 am to get to work on time. This meant an early bedtime for him which for my mom and I meant we had to be quiet once 8 pm hit.
I decided to have a celebratory bowl of ice cream, so I slipped upstairs silently. I turned on the porch light to see extra large snowflakes falling to the ground. The snow widened my smile that I was still wearing from the win. It was January after all, and there hadn’t been all that much snow in December, which was upsetting to me. As much as I enjoyed the warmth of summer, winter had always been so beautiful to me. Although it wasn’t very attractive when it melted and turned slushy, I loved the sparkling look of a fresh snowfall.
After a moment of watching the snow, I went back to getting a cool snack. I spooned three scoops of vanilla ice cream into a bowl and added a little bit of caramel and black and red sprinkles to match the Kane jersey I was wearing. Yes, Kane was my favorite player. With such a great team, especially this year, it was hard to choose a favorite player, but I had chosen Patrick Kane as mine. I guessed it was a combination of his skills on the ice, his determination, and yes, his looks, that helped me choose. I did have a bit of a crush on him, but so what?
After eating my ice cream, I reluctantly pulled my jersey off and handed it over to my mom. It was in great need of a washing, especially with another Hawks game coming up in two days. One day too late to be a birthday game for me. Of course, once again, there was a game the day before and the day after my birthday (January 5), but not exactly on it. The one year there had been a game on the exact day, it was an away game. I had been dreaming of going to a game for my birthday for years, but to my dismay, it hadn’t happened yet and it wasn’t going to happen for this exciting 20th birthday of mine.
As disappointed about this as I was, I was still very excited for my birthday bash, which was happening the next day. Apparently my family and friends had something planned for me. It wasn’t necessarily a surprise party, because they told me that they were doing something for me, and I knew we were going to Chicago for it. However, I still had no idea what we could possibly be doing. A shopping trip to all my favorite stores? A nice dinner at Hard Rock or Rainforest? I was clueless. I was still thrilled, though, even before it happened. Chicago was my favorite place to be. I loved everything about it, and I was determined to move there after I got done with school. No matter what their plans were for me, I was sure I would enjoy it.
“I’m going to bed, Destiny. Don’t forget to set your alarm before you go to bed, we’re leaving at 10 am!” my mom reminded me when I was almost done eating my ice cream. Oh yeah. I had to wake up early on my birthday, the one day I would have loved to sleep in the most. Just the extra sleep would have been a good enough gift, but I knew I wasn’t getting it. I stayed up just a little longer to watch the post game footage of the players and Coach Q, and then I finally decided to go to bed. Tomorrow would be a long, exciting day, and I needed to get some rest. When I finally did get to bed, though, I was like a little kid on Christmas Eve, and it took what felt like hours for me to fall asleep. When I finally got exhausted enough, I drifted off into a deep sleep in which I dreamt of being at the Hawks game and meeting every player, including my favorite.
7/12/13