Come be a Kid Again

Bryce and Kellen---the ultimate of "kids".

Come be a kid again is the theme of our Knob Fair this year. The parade had some imaginative floats, the t-shirts were cute, and there was the usual extreme amount of candy thrown. Everyone was happy. Then, the carnival. We have a great carnival. We waited on a list, many years ago, to get this carnival. We have even moved the dates of the fair to accommodate this carnival. It has fun rides, winnable games, ok carnival food, and a slide. I love the slide. For me, the slide is like the Viking Voyager at World's of Fun-----just thrilling enough. After the advent of wrist bands, my children, and now my grandchildren have gone down the slide 30 times a fair. I have often gone down 4 or 5 times a fair.

Alas, my days of slide thrills may have come to an end. I went to "to be a kid again" last night and nearly broke my back. I should have heeded the warnings. Several people had said the slide was faster this year. I, however, thinking I was a slide veteran, ignored, what I considered, the amateurs and ascended the stairs. After all climbing those many stairs has always been the hard part-----going down was easy. I reached the top, the view was inspiring. I saw carnival lights, lots of people,and heard screams of ecstasy from the more challenging rides. I WAS a kid again. I put my feet in the offered sack, sat down and I was free-sliding. The first bump was fine, the second I briefly lost contact with the surface, on the third hump I was traveling 180 miles an hour and was truly airborne. As with all things up----I came down. I landed and felt as if my every vertebrae had been smashed together. I, of course, still slid to the bottom, where I immediately reclined. I could do nothing else. Lauren stood over me concerned. The carnival guy stood over me, mainly wishing I would move so the next hapless slider could descend. (He did ask me if I could move my toes.) Also, a young man I have know since his childhood was standing above me continuously asking, "Are you alright? Can I help you? Should I call an ambulance?" My back hurt---- I was thinking an ambulance might be necessary. (The shock and pain were enough I was not even embarrassed.) Finally, I got up, walked over to lie flat on the grass. Eventually that did help. I was beginning to have hope then of recovery.

Within minutes almost everyone I saw knew of my idiocy. They were also telling me ways to heal and of many children complaining about the slide's fastness this year. It seems the carnival got new sacks with "almost" magic carpet power. Great, but the landing needs some work!

I think I will be fine. But when I go tonight "to be a kid again" I will not ride the slide. I am, sadly, done with the slide. There are, after all, limits to my youth and I think that limit is being 61 years old.