Conversation in the Shadow

I am in the park. Not far from my Montréal home. It is humid and quite cold today.

I look down at my cross country skis spread clumsily on the snow. I was trying to attach boots to them already for ten minutes, without any success.

It has been a long time since I tried skiing.

I hear someone talking to me from the side, starting with “Ça va,” (greeting in …