Aspen
Finding Love on the Slopes: My Experience with a Matchmaker
I’ve always loved skiing. Ever since I was a little girl, I dreamed of living in a snowy mountain town and teaching others how to enjoy the sport. That’s why I moved to Aspen, Colorado when I was 25 and became a ski instructor.
For a while, I thought I had it all: a fulfilling career, a beautiful home, and a loving husband. But then, things changed. He got bored of our lifestyle and wanted to move back to the city. He said he felt trapped and isolated in Aspen. He said he wanted more excitement and adventure.
He left me for a younger woman who shared his new passions. I was devastated. I felt like my whole world had collapsed. I was 47 years old, divorced, and alone.
I tried to cope by throwing myself into my work, but it wasn’t enough. I missed having someone to share my life with. Someone who understood me and appreciated me.
Someone who loved skiing as much as I did.
But where could I find such a person? Aspen is a small town, and most of the people I knew were either married or tourists. I didn’t have much luck with online dating either. Most of the men who contacted me were either too young, too old, or too far away.
That’s when I decided to try something different: a matchmaker.
I had heard about a matchmaking service that specialized in finding compatible partners for ski enthusiasts. They claimed to have a network of clients all over the world who were looking for love on the slopes. They said they would match me with someone who met my criteria and arrange a ski date for us.
I was skeptical at first, but I decided to give it a try. What did I have to lose?
I filled out an online profile and answered some questions about myself and my ideal partner. I specified that I was looking for a man between 40 and 55 years old who was single, divorced, or widowed, who loved skiing and nature, who was adventurous and fun-loving, who had a good sense of humor and a kind heart, and who was looking for a serious relationship.
A few days later, I received an email from the matchmaking service saying they had found a match for me. His name was Mark, he was 49 years old, he lived in Denver, he was a lawyer and a ski instructor, he had been divorced for two years, he had two grown-up children who lived in another state, and he loved skiing and nature.
They sent me his photo and some details about him. He looked handsome and friendly. He had brown hair and blue eyes, he wore glasses and a smile. He liked reading, hiking, and traveling. He sounded perfect.
They also told me where and when we would meet: at the Aspen Mountain Lodge on Saturday morning at 10 am. They said they had booked us a room for the weekend and arranged for us to have ski passes and equipment.
I was nervous and excited. I didn’t know what to expect. Would we hit it off? Would we have chemistry? Would we have fun?
I packed my bags and drove to the lodge on Saturday morning. I checked in and went to the lobby to wait for Mark. He arrived shortly after me. He recognized me from my photo and greeted me with a hug.
He was even more attractive in person than in his picture. He smelled good too. He wore a blue ski jacket and black pants. He had a backpack with him.
“Hi, I’m Mark,” he said. “You must be Lisa.”
“Yes, that’s me,” I said. “It’s nice to meet you.”
“Likewise,” he said. “You look great.”
“Thank you,” I said. “So do you.”
We smiled at each other awkwardly.
“So,” he said. “Are you ready to hit the slopes?”
“Yes,” I said. “Let’s go.”
We grabbed our skis and headed to the lift.
As soon as we got on the snow, we felt more comfortable with each other. We skied together effortlessly, following each other’s turns and rhythms. We chatted about our lives, our hobbies, our families.
We found out we had a lot in common: we both loved skiing (obviously), we both enjoyed reading (he liked thrillers, I liked romance), we both liked hiking (he preferred mountains, I preferred forests), we both liked traveling (he had been to Europe, I had been to Asia).
We also found out we had some differences: he was more outgoing than me (he liked parties, I liked quiet nights), he was more…
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