It was December 25th, 1776, when George Washington buckled his boots and slid his feet into place on the dreaded wooden skis.
“I can do this,” he said to himself, nervously, before hopping onto the oncoming lift. He closed his eyes as his feet slid off the wooden plank. He took big, long breaths and tried to calm himself down. After he thought he was a good distance off the ground, he opened his eyes. Immediately, the chair lift stopped.
“It’s okay,” he said to himself. “It will start up soon. I will just lean back and…” He had fallen from the chair lift!
“I hold these truths to be self evident, that all men will survive falling to their deaths from chair lifts,” he chanted all the way down to the snow below.
When he hit the snow, he rolled all the way down to the the next flat landing. He stayed there curled up into a ball for at least ten minutes. When he finally had the courage to stand up again, he found his troops standing in front of him.
“Are you ok, General Washington?” they politely asked.
“Yes, I am fine,” George Washington replied.
“Let’s go to my house for tea!” one of the soldiers stated.
“Yes, but the only way there from here is to cross the Delaware river…”