My First Ball

As old as my hockey skills.
My first ever hockey ball sits
Crammed away in my bottom drawer
sitting there oneself, not to be used.

Strikes like a hammer when it hits
So many bumps and bruises
but it has all been worth it
as it has got me where I am today.
It has also had its fair share of dents and scratches
so we feel the pain together.

And still now it flies through the sky
Like an enormous gob stopper
Hitting the goal at lightning speed
All I can hear is the screams from my team
As we have just won the game.

My final game has come and gone
So I place my ball, back in its resting place
An off-season before next summer.