“Don’t forget to wear an extra pair of socks,” yells my mom while putting her ski pants on. I put on the rest of my clothes and grab my ski coat.

“Don’t worry. I got it!” I yell back, walking out of the room to the breakfast hall. The smell of crepes and cheese fills my nose as my sisters run past me to sit at the table.

It is a cold day in Switzerland: the windows are frosted and I can hear the wind rushing outside of the rom. The sun is nowhere to be seen and weather reports state a gloomy day ahead.

“I don’t want to ski today,” cries my sister, “we won’t even be able to see anything because of the snow.” Here she goes; it is only 9 in the morning and Eloise is already whining. I spread jam on a crepe and eat it quietly, thinking about how she is kind of right.

“Stop complaining! It’s not everyday you get to ski in the French Alps. We are literally cross country skiing today!” says my mom. Our hotel is located in Switzerland, but we are skiing in the French Alps throughout the day.

We finish breakfast and then bundle up for the cold. Sweat drips down my back as we hike to the bus that is bringing us to the gondola. We get off and put our ski boots on to go to the chair lift.

I don’t really want to ski today either, I think to myself. The snow is picking up so much that I can barely see my sisters five feet ahead of me.

Then, we ride up to the top of the gondola and get off. Most of the signs are in French, so we are able to navigate our way around the mountains.

“This way!” yells my mom after following a sign that leads to a trail bringing us higher up the mountain. I don’t want to go higher. I am fine at this level. I start to get really nervous but don’t want to say anything for fear of sounding like my whiny little sister.

We ski to another chair lift that brings us even higher up the mountain. When we get off of the chairlift, even my parents are worried about the weather.

“Maybe we should head back down,” yells my dad because the wind is blowing so hard.

“Just wait! It should clear up soon,” my mom screams, “Let’s go get some hot chocolate and wait a few minutes.” Are you insane? This wind could literally blow me off the mountain. We finish our hot chocolate and put our ski gear back on.

After snacking, we walk out of the restaurant only 5 minutes later, but it looks like we have stepped into another dimension. The snow is lightly trickling down and the sun has come out. The view is one of the most breathtaking images I have ever witnessed. Green trees could be seen for miles and miles ahead. The white, glistening snow contrasts the black rock of the surrounding mountains. It looks like something out of a Bob Ross Painting. This is amazing, I think to myself, not wanting to ski back down the mountain.

“I told you it would clear up,” says my mom, smiling at the gorgeous view ahead of us. I feel this overwhelming sense of peace and appreciation for the beautiful world that God has created. We stand there for 10 minutes, not wanting to move because of how pretty the world we live in looks. I say a prayer thanking God for this beautiful landscape, and we ski down the mountain, mesmerized by the gorgeous Swiss Alps.