Many things are a mystery to me. Actually, anything that I am not familiar with seems mysterious to me. I don't really understand the world of race car driving, for example, because it is totally foreign to me. I definitely do not understand people who spend hours each day doing crossword puzzles. I can never sit still long enough to do one puzzle let alone hours worth each day. But to me, the biggest mystery used to be the world of skate parks. I didn't understand why people went to them or what kind of people you could find there. That's all changed now, since I've spent some time at a skate park myself.

The biggest thing I noticed during my visits to skate parks was that they really are their own communities. I saw girls and boys ranging in age from around five years old up till around twenty-five years old. It was amazing though, because age doesn't seem to matter at skate parks. I saw little boys skating alongside teenage girls without any problems. It almost seemed like all the people at the skate parks are actually friends. I guess skating has brought them together and identified them as the same kind of people so that they really begin to look and function like a group. At each of the skate parks I visited it looked like everyone watches out for everyone else. People seem to really care about one another and they seemed to be full of support and encouragement for other skaters.

Another thing I learned from visiting skate parks was that there really is a certain look and vibe among skaters. For the most part, skaters of all ages dressed the same with baggy pants and loose fitting tee shirts. I did not see anyone at the skate parks that was overly concerned with the latest fashion. I guess their concern was only to fit in with the other people within their community, a characteristic typical of members of any kind of community.

I really enjoyed visiting skate parks. They are filled with really talented young people who have found, at least for now, their place in the world. Most of the skaters I talked with said that skating has become their ultimate passion. They never tire of spending hour after hour, week after week practicing at skate parks. They have made a solid group of friends and are very happy with their lives.

It was good for me to visit skate parks because now I understand them better. They moved from being mysterious to be intriguing enough to me that I went out and bought a board. My next test is getting up the courage to return to one of the skate parks and try it out.