Most people would say that summer is there favorite season because of the warm air, the smell of fresh cut grass, and hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill, but I have always loved the cold brisk air that winter brings. I have never been able to pinpoint why I love winter so much, my mom says it’s because my birthday is in the winter but I think the main reason why I love winter so much is because I have so many fond memories of skiing in the mountains with my family. Skiing has been on my dad’s side of the family for generations. Both of my grandparents skied even though I never saw them ever put on a pair of skis, but my uncles and my dad all ski. My dad thought it would be a good idea for me to learn as well, so at the age of four I went out onto the slopes. Living in the ocean state does not give you many opportunities to learn how to ski but the only ski area in Rhode Island; “Yawgoo Valley” gave me the opportunity to learn a sport that has forever impacted my life. At the age four my dad decided to enroll me in skiing lessons at Yawgoo, from the minute I started skiing I loved it. The one place where I feel that I can relax is in the snow-capped mountains. In Madison, New Hampshire, a small town nestled in the mountains, lies a small resort, called “Purity Spring”. My dad and Uncles went there as children with my grandparents so the resort holds a lot of memories for many people in my family. I was one years old when the tradition started for me, and I have gone every year since then. The resort has a very rustic feel to it and has not changed one bit since I first starting going. That may be the reason why I love it so much because it’s the one thing in my life that has not really ever changed. Over the past year I have really done a lot of thinking about all the memories I have from “Purity Spring”, especially the memories that I have of my grandfather while we have been there. My grandfather passed away from Alzheimer’s disease a little over month ago. Alzheimer’s disease took everything away from my grandfather and stripped every memory that he had. It’s a very sad thing to witness, to see someone that you love go though something that they are not even aware of. Over the past 3 to 4 years while my grandfather’s conditioned worsened it was really hard for me to remember all the amazing memories we had shared together. The only things that I could remember were the stressful, and sad times we had had over the past couple of years. Purity Spring Resort made me realize that I shouldn’t remember the bad times, that I should be thankful that I got to spend so many years of my life creating memories with my grandfather, even if he would never remember them again I would always go back to those moments, and picture myself sitting in the window seat with my grandfather looking out to see the snow fall on the ground and the tall snow banks that would always cover the welcome sign. Even though the memories I have of him from Purity Spring are not substantial, they are permanent and not even a terrible disease that has affected both my family and myself could ever take that away from me.