It was back in grade two in the Philippines when I first encountered my fear of swimming. I was one of the smaller kids in the class, and I still needed a life vest to swim. How pitiful can that be? Not only did I realize that swimming was harder than it seemed, I also had an epiphany. I learned that sometimes in life, the greatest challenges we face is with ourselves. I remember this incident like it was just yesterday.
I anxiously opened the envelope when I saw the letter addressed to "Kyle".
"I never got a letter before" I thought, as shards of paper went flying across the room. As the letter continues, my eyes started to dilate, and my heart started to pump. I realized I was invited to my first party.
My dad was on a business trip when I first received my invitation. I decided to talk to my mom instead. I rushed downstairs with footsteps of a Sasquatch but as tall as mini-me.
"Mom! Mom!" I yelled. "I', invited to my friend Red's party!"
"Who is Red?" my mom asked "And what kind of a name is Red anyways?"
"He's my friend, mom. It's a swimming party at his house." I said as I looked over at the steaming pot to see what it was. My mom and I debated the terms in which I had to follow to be able to attend the party. No bringing my PlayStation. No horse playing. My nanny had to come along and I had to wear my life vest at all times, since I couldn't swim. I was ecstatic. Friday could not come any slower.
Friday finally arrived and I was heading over to my friend's house. I arrived at his house only to find out that I was the first one to arrive. Once the door opened, I rushed into his house. I did not have a care in the world of what people thought of me.
As I walked into the living room, the fresh aroma of chips and pop rushed into my nasal cavity. A giant flat screen T.V. to the left, marbled floors, counter tops, and state of the art fridges. --life I would care about high end fridges.-- The scent of chlorine wafted over me as I went outside. Complete with a a swimming pool, a slide and the fresh scent of pine trees to compliment it, Red's house seemed to be paradise. I waited for my friend Red before I plunged into the pool, life vest and all. An hour passed and I was still in the pool. Wrinkled fingertips and toes, it was obvious that I was in the pool for too long. Like a rubber ducky atop a big orange floating device, I was floating atop the chlorine filled pool. As I examined my surroundings like a new born baby chick, I realized that I was the only one who couldn't swim. It gave me something to think about.
"What would happen if I took my life vest away?" I pondered. The possibilities were narrowed down to two. I would either go inside Red's house and watch T.V. with the others who were afraid to swim, or try and be bold. I decided to go with the latter.
"If most of my friends could swim why not me?" I thought. I started to take my life best off and went to atop the big blue slide. I took a big breath and pushed myself forward. It felt great. For the first two seconds wind blow past my face and water gushed under my feet. It was like I was on cloud nine. It was incredible, until I hit the pool. I went underwater and panicked. I tried paddling, kicking, and grabbing on to other people's legs. After struggling for what seemed like eternity, my life flashed before me. I ran out of breath and fainted.
I woke up at the back of an ambulance. I was bloated. Full of water, a bit of chlorine and possibly a hint of urine, I felt horrible. I vomited into a bucket, as my nanny explained that my friend's dad was a doctor. He performed CPR to save my life. He was my knight in shining armour. I went back to sleep.
I woke up at the hospital and attached to a variety of medical apparatuses. My mom and dad walked into the room and hugged me. It was like I was in a drama movie where I was the star. My dad didn't know anything the party or me drowning. He only found out when he got off the plane from his business trip. It was a harsh day for me and it was lucky that Red's father was able save me. I found out that my nanny was fired right after this little incident for being slightly inattentive.
As for me, I was hoping that my friends would visit me but they never showed up. I guess they were too busy with school or having fun at Red's house.
Up to this day, I never told my parents the truth about this little incident. It has scared me for life but I will always keep it to myself that it was my fault for drowning because of my lack of reasoning. Yet because of this unfortunate incident, I have learned that the we face multiple challenges in life, but the decisions we make when we face challenges with ourselves might end up biting you in the behind.
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