AsI walk into the building, my heart pounds and my mind races. Recognizable sightsand sounds surround me. I've done this a million times, but that familiaranticipation keeps building.

Entering the locker room, I once again feelthe intensity build inside. As I put on my equipment, I am transformed. I'm big,strong and there's a fire rising inside me. I am like a warrior going intobattle. As I lace my skates, the fire is about to burst.

I step on thatice and I feel so comfortable. I've been doing this for years, yet it never getsold. Once I'm out on the ice, nothing matters: who likes whom and why your bestfriend's mad at you. It doesn't matter what clothes you wear or who knows thelatest gossip. It doesn't matter whose parents have the most money and whose haveto work late hours. It doesn't matter who gets picked on or who hangs out withthe "cool kids." Everyone is equal, and everyone works together toachieve one goal: to win and play as one.

The ice is a way to relax andwork hard at something I love. As I glide along the ice, I build up momentum.This is what I live for, the freedom of the ice. We warm up, the coach gives usour pep talk, and we're ready for anything. The referee blows his whistle,warning us that it's time to begin. We take the ice and together take theopponents head on. All our practice and hard work have come down to thesemoments.

It amazes me how I move so smoothly, yet with such aggression,across the ice. I feel the strength of the stick in my hands and move freely,precisely. I feel the weight of the puck on my stick as I head toward the goal. Ishoot and come so close. We come back as a team and try again. Once again I feelthe weight of the puck, and once again, I shoot. I score! That is what life isall about: practice and persistence. You shoot for what you want in life and youwork for it. You may miss, but you never give up. My life is and always will behockey. Life and hockey go hand in hand. Hockey gives life a sense of meaning andfun.