We ran and panted through and around tall oak trees. The sound of the polar white snow crushing beneath my feet and the breeze from the cold air chilled my spine. The golden sun was glistening during the cold winter day. My friends and I, just young kids back then, played in the woods behind my house. Almost every free weekend Tyler, Trevor, Tyson, and I had, we went into the woods and adventured for countless hours. Whether it was pretending we ran from fake entities or that we could jump from one side of the creek to the other, memories formed.

One winter afternoon, as we trotted further into the woods following deer tracks, we ended up at an old rusty brown railroad track that is no longer being used. Here we played games and saw who could stay on the gritty track the longest without falling off. Tyson fell off but exclaimed that it was too slick. Eventually, we grew bored and decided to head down a different path. We marched like soldiers one by one through the snow-covered thicket. As we came into a valley where just a cool blue stream ran through, Tyler remarked, “We should walk on the ice for fun,” so that’s just what we did. We crept onto the transparent ice. I could hear my friends shout, “Oh gosh, my boots are soaked,” as they fell through the ice. Some logs had fallen across the streams, so we tried to shuffle on them or hold onto their rugged edges as we walked across the ice. On this particular day, we decided to play a game to see who could last on the ice the longest without falling in. Everyone was scared because we had no idea how deep the water would be, but we all agreed that it would be fun. We all jumped up and down and became ecstatic to get on the ice. Being just kids, we had no idea what would happen. A few minutes in, the ice cracked beneath our feet. We swiftly jumped off the ice, but Trevor screeched as he fell in. His yell was so loudly that I bet the whole neighborhood heard it. The water was deeper than we had thought. He sunk completely under the frigid water, and we all grabbed his arms to pull him out. After emerging from the water he said, “The water tasted terrible.” We all giggled. He then stated, “I am freezing,” but I still had a little warmth left.

Deciding that it was best that we get him home so he didn’t freeze to death, we started back up and down the hills of the snow-covered woods. I could see the path that we came from, and it made us one step closer to being home. We chucked snowballs and messed around as we began to steer away from our obvious objective of getting home. With the cold, wet snow, I formed snowball after snowball and my fingers became frigid. They were so cold. Just trying to make the best of the situation with Trevor freezing, we started to chant songs as we began wailing again. The birds chirped in the trees and the water in the streams rushed as we walked. I couldn’t wait to get back to the house because the thought of mom’s warm hot chocolate made me tingle.

I skipped and trudged through the snow. I thought about the heat from the chestnut-colored drink and instinctively started to sprint as the excitement built up inside me. My friends waddled closely behind. A ways up ahead, I saw the steep, snow-covered hill led down the crevice in which we played in. The hill was rough as the slimy mud under the snow was slippery as we started the climb. My legs became bolts as I tried dashing up the hill. It was tough to make the ascension, but after a few attempts, we finally made it. Seeing the house in the distance, we started to jog with our clothes soaked and covered in mud, the warmth of the house greeted us as we opened the door. Mom had hot chocolate waiting for us, and we filled up with joy. The heat from the cup warmed my frigid hands, and as I took a sip the sweet drink burnt the top of my mouth. Moms’ hot chocolate tasted like heaven on the cold winter day.

Looking through the windows, the woods shined with the color white, and our day there was complete. Fun-filled memories have always been created in those woods, and times we would never forget would always make conversation between my friends and me. Stories like these formed our childhood as we grew up.