Ice Skating

At 40+ I'm learning ice skating. After almost 6 months I'm getting weary. Today I read on the Recreational Skating FAQ:

Let's look at the process of learning to skate. First of all, if skating were easy, it wouldn't take 10+ years to learn the sport. So get over the notion that you will get results, any kind of results, quickly. You absolutely must fall in love with the process of skating. And the process of skating involves a lot of self examination. You will learn to face your fears. You will learn perseverance like you've never experienced it. And you will have the greatest highs in the world when after months and months and months of working at something without any indication of improvement you have an "AHA!" moment and suddenly find yourself gracefully and seemingly effortlessly doing that which only a month ago seemed impossible.

Skating involves complete control over every single muscle in yourbody. Learn to focus NOT on getting the trick, but one gaining a greater sense of awareness of your body and increased control of it. The ice rink is the skater's laboratory. It is where we go to experiment. What happens if I turn my head this way? What happens if I lean a little more that way? What happens if I drop my shoulder another 1/2 inch? If you go to each skating session with the goal of learning more about how your body affects your skating, you will never leave frustrated. You may learn 1001 and things that do not help you with this trick. But you will have learned some interesting things.

Have fun and keep working at it. Because if you work at it long enough and have patience, the skating gods will visit you with a lovely"Aha!" and all the pain and suffering will instantly be forgotten. (adapted from "What I get from skating", by Janet Swan-Hill)

From: http://stason.org/TULARC/sports/recreational-figure-skating/3-5-the-pay-off.html