- Episode 7
- On the Edge of a Cliff
- After about 5 minutes in the snow mound, Mal started getting bored. He wasn't worried yet, but he did wonder why the dogs still hadn't found him. He started wiggling his arms to free them, but as he wiggled, some snow from the top of the hole got loose and fell on his head. "Hey!" he yelled, surprised and just a little worried.
- Meanwhile, Mort had ridden back up and began looking for his wife and children. Not seeing them, he called Agnes's cell phone. "Where are you? Did Mal find you ok?" he asked.
- "Mal? I thought he was with you," Agnes replied.
- "He saw you and Mel near the warming hut when we came up last time and said he was going to catch up with you," Mort said, now afraid for Mal's safety and afraid that Agnes would be angry that he didn't follow Mal.
- "Don't worry. We'll find him," Agnes replied, trying to hide her own fears from Mel. "We're at the Lenawee lift. We'll keep an eye out for him as we come up."
- As Mort skied toward the warming hut, he noticed Mal's skis. He removed his own skis and went inside, described Mal and asked if anyone had seen him. No luck.
- The ski patroller had just taken off her skis and was heading toward the warming hut when Mort was leaving it. "Have you seen a seven-year-old boy? These are his skis, but no boy."
- "Did he have a blue ski outfit? He was so cute, watching us train our rescue dogs," she said.
- Rescue dogs! Mort knew how much Mal loved dogs. "Yes. He loves dogs. His name is Mallory. We call him Mal," Mort said, relieved that at least someone knew what Mal looked like.
- "Mal," the ski patroller called out, having an idea of what a little boy who loved dogs might have thought. "The dogs aren't here anymore. You'd better come out now."
- Mal heard the voice, but it wasn't his mother's. He wasn't sure what he should do. He couldn't pretend to have been out for a walk. Where was his mother and father, and Mel? Then he heard Mort's voice. "Mal, do you hear me? Where are you?"
- "Dad," Mal called out softly, and then louder when he realized that the snow probably muffled his voice.
- Mort and the ski patroller ran to where they thought they heard Mal's voice. It seemed to come from the top of the little hill, just before the steep, rocky area that was outside the ski area boundary.
- "Careful. It's very treacherous here," the ski patroller warned. "Your son needs to keep very still, or the snow can give way and he'll tumble down the mountain."
- "Mal. Don't move. We're coming to get you," Mort called out.
- "It's ok, Dad. I can't move my feet anyway," Mal called back.
- "Hush, now. Let me remove some snow here on this side so we can get you out. Don't lean in any direction until I tell you to," the ski patroller spoke sternly.
- Mal knew he was in for a major scolding and said "ok" in a very quiet voice.
- The ski patroller took the shovel that was a just a few feet away and quickly removed enough snow so she could grab Mal by the waist and pull him to safety. She then led him by the hand, with Mort following them, to just beyond the warming hut and told him to look down, toward Montezuma Bowl. "Look down there," she said, first pointing to the exposed rocky surface of the mountain and then to the little hill that ended abruptly in a steep cliff. Mal, you were just inches away from falling and rolling down the cliff to your death. We wouldn't have found your body until spring."
- Agnes and Mel saw part of the rescue operation from the lift and hurried over as they reached the top. Mel was shivering, partly from the cold and partly afraid for her brother. Mal started shivering too, not from the cold but in anticipation of the scolding he was sure to get.
- "Let's all go into the hut. I've got something to say to you, young man." The ski patroller's voice was even more stern than before.
- "I'm Agnes, his mother," Agnes said. She saw the patroller's name was Janice. "And this is his sister Mel. Thank you. Thank you very much, Janice. We're very sorry about all this."
- Janice ordinarily would have radioed for help, but she knew that there would be paperwork, perhaps fines, and the family might even be barred from skiing there again. She realized that sometimes parents do all they can and their children still get into trouble. But the Ski Patrol sees the unfortunate consequences of reckless behavior and provides emergency care on a daily basis. If only someone had taught them to be aware of, and have a healthy respect for, the powerful forces of nature at an early age! She wanted to make sure that Mal learned an important lesson before he would try to do something so dangerous again.
- A Lesson in Nature
- "So, young man. You were waiting for the rescue dogs?"
- Mal just nodded.
- "I want everyone to sit down around this table, here. Mal, you stand next to me," Janice said firmly.
- Janice took a paper napkin and several packets of sugar from the coffee area and sat down. She placed the napkin on the table and moved it until it was overhanging the edge of the table by about two inches. She tore the top off one packet of sugar and handed it to Mel.
- "Here. I want you to pour the sugar onto the napkin, as close as you can to the edge of the table."
- Mal did as he was told. He was a little nervous and some of the sugar that landed on the overhanging part of the napkin spilled on the floor.
- "Ok, let's try more sugar," Janice said as she tore the second sugar packet open, and then a third and a fourth.
- Mal wasn't much better with the next sugar packets, and some of the sugar from each packet landed on the floor. Janice took out a small bag of peanuts from her parka when she was satisfied with the little mound of sugar that had built up on the table. She gave Mal a peanut.
- "Here. Let's say this is you. I want you to drop the peanut right on top of your sugar-snow hill."
- Then Mal realized what Janice was trying to show him. He tried to drop the peanut onto the middle of the sugar pile, but he was off center by just a little. The peanut plopped onto the edge of the sugar pile, quickly rolled down the overhanging napkin and dropped onto the floor, along with a good bit of the sugar. Mel tried to "rescue" the peanut as it fell, but missed, because it all happened so quickly.
- "I guess I don't have to tell you what could have happened to you," Janice said.
- Mal put his head down and nodded.
- Janice suggested that Mal and Mel go out and start putting on their skis, that she and their parents would join them in a minute.
- "That was a really good lesson...for all of us," Agnes said.
- Janice explained how agonizing it was for her to help rescue youngsters, just a few years older than Mal, with head injuries, broken arms, legs, even backs. "Then it's too late."
- She also suggested that they not scold Mal just yet, that it would be better if he had time to absorb the lesson while skiing back down the mountain.
- The family skied cautiously all the way down, stopping frequently to catch their breath. Agnes and Mort decided to delay their scolding and discussion with Mal Even though Mal kept to the middle of the trails, he couldn't help looking up and admiring the skiers tackling the black diamond runs. Some day, he told himself, I'll be up there too.
- Every parking space at the "beach" was taken when they got to the base. There were flowery table cloths on some of the picnic tables and a few of the lawn chairs even had sun umbrellas. Two big dogs were playing in the snow. Mal could smell hamburgers cooking, and brats, and realized he was hungry.
- "Mom, can I go take a look? See, Dad? People here DO cook outside in the snow."
- "Let's put our gear away first. Then we can go over and say a quick hi to those folks before we go back to the cafeteria for a quick snack," Mort said, knowing his son was probably hungry after the day's skiing and his ordeal, both in the snow mound and in the warming hut. He was hungry too and assumed Agnes and Mel could use a snack as well. It would also be a good time to reinforce the lesson Mal learned from Janice.
- The Beach at A-Basic
- Their ski gear put away, the Maloneys walked up to a family whose winter picnic was among the most elaborate. It was a combination picnic and tailgate party. A big cooler filled with bottles and cans sat on the tailgate of their SUV. A cloth tablecloth covered the picnic table and there were silverware and "real" plates, not plastic and paper. Mal tried hard not to look too interested in the bowls of potato salad, veggies, chips, buns, relish and other dishes, but he couldn't stop himself from going right up to the grill, where the most delicious smells were coming from.
- "Sorry, our son has an uncommon interest in food," Agnes said to the woman apologetically. "Midwesterners don't know the joys of outdoor winter eating, I'm afraid."
- The man, meanwhle, offered Mort a bottle from the cooler. "No thanks," Mort said. "Our children haven't seen a beach party in winter before, and, to tell you the truth, neither have I. We just wanted to stop by and have a look. We'll be going back to the A-frame in a few minutes."
- While the adults conversed, the couple's two children, Tony and Maria brought over a beach ball and began to play catch with Mal and Mel.
- After a few more minutes of talking, the Maloneys made their way to the Legends Café. When they got to the top of the steps, Agnes noticed that Mal was holding a bun with a big juicy brat in one hand.
- "The nice lady gave it to me," Mal said. "I guess I looked hungry. And she said she liked my name for this place."
- "Mal, what are we going to do with you?" Agnes exclaimed in exasperation.
- "What name are you talking about, Mal?" Mort asked.
- "When we were leaving, Tony asked me which ski place I like best, and I told him here, at A-Basic," Mal said.
- Mel nodded her head. "I like it best too, especially the snow dunes at the top where there are no trees. It's a really nice place, even if SOME people get into trouble."
- A-Basic. How appropriate! Neither Mort nor Agnes could suppress a smile, despite their intention to deliver a scolding and serious lecture about nature's hidden dangers...which, of course, they did after they finished their mid-afternoon bowls of chili. Mal understood, as well as his seven-year-old mind could understand, how close he came to becoming badly injured. He promised to remember: "Think twice about possible consequences before acting once" in the future.
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