A slightly exaggerated, partially true story.
The phone is lying in the waterproof phone case. The lid is open. I glance up. The phone’s going to get wet if I don’t close the phone case… I crawl onto the side of the yellow sailboat, barely wide enough for me to kneel on. I edge my way to the front of the boat. One hand at a time. Right forward, then left, right, left…
I peer into the waves. Dark, muddy waves. Don’t fall in. I lift my right hand. I’m reaching for the lid, my hand at its full extent, brushing the edge of the container. Suddenly, my left hand slides off the side of the boat. My fingers rake the little sailboat’s side before I plunge into the water.
I grip the front of my life jacket. My lungs are going to burst. As my bare feet touch the bottom of the lake, I see the earlier accounts of my day fly before me like a tape recorder unwinding.
“Here, Jubi. You can take the rudder. Lay it where those big rocks are.” Daddy deposited the bulky apparatus into my arms. While I toted it to a large flat rock on the edge of Lake Ray Roberts, Daddy hauled the mast out of the truck bed. I peered across the water. Looks a little dark… I wonder what swims in the water? Great whites with rows of sharp teeth? 20 foot killer whales? I’d never been sailing before, and was a little nervous… Okay, to be honest, I was terrified of falling in the water. I shuddered and hurried back to Daddy to assist in unloading.
A few minutes later the various parts of the boat were leaning against the rocks. We assembled the boat and unfurled the sail. Daddy beamed at me, his dimpled grin and dark eyebrows almost convincing me that sailing wasn’t so bad. I cautiously stepped into the boat and sat down so my legs stopped wobbling.
A light warm breeze blew from the south. The air smelled like water and pecan trees. The Texas summer sun beat on our backs, but we didn’t care. In other words, Daddy didn’t care because he was enjoying himself; I didn’t notice because I was staring endlessly at the water and gripping the side of the boat. Sprays of cool water splashed from the stern. It had rained a few days before, so the water was muddy brown, but the sky was bright blue. Our boat made ripples behind it as we sped along. It was indeed the perfect day for enjoying one’s self.
After a while, I loosened my grip on the boat and listened while Daddy showcased various parts of the ship (two different parts, in fact; the rudder, and the boom). Daddy demonstrated steering the boat using the rudder. When you turn the rudder, the boom swings over so the sail can catch the wind.
“You just have to make sure to duck when the boom swings or you’ll get hit in the head,” he warned me.
I grinned. Sailing is effortless! I decided to steer the rudder while Daddy worked the ropes that attached to the boom. Soon, we were reclining in the boat, breathing in the beautiful day.
After a peaceful hour, we steered toward shore. We had sailed only a few hundred yards from the rocky outcrop when Daddy snapped his fingers.
“Oh, shoot! We forgot to take a picture!”
“Huh?”
“We should have taken one back there when we were in the middle of the lake!”
“Oh. Well we can take one now.”
“Guess so.” Daddy fumbled with the waterproof case that held the phone and keys. I leaned over his shoulder. He pulled out the phone and tapped the screen. Large letters appeared across it: OVERHEATED.
“What should we do?” I asked.
“I’ll just leave it open so it can cool off before we get back.”
“But Daddy, you shouldn’t.”
“It’ll be fine.”
“It’ll get wet!”
“We’ll close it in just a minute.”
I sighed. I almost let it go… but what if it got water-logged and damaged? How would we contact Mommy if something happened? And if the key’s battery case was damaged, our vehicle wouldn’t unlock. I didn’t want to be stranded! I forgot my fear of deep water as I made up my mind. I had to close the phone case!
Back to the present, I bobbed to the surface. The boat is already a few yards away. I’m glad for my swimming lessons! Daddy steers the boat towards me. I scoop and kick with all my might. He releases the rudder, extending his hand to help me up. I scramble into the boat, dripping. Whew! I’m back on board!
CRRREEEAAAKKK!
Suddenly, the boom swings towards us. Barely missing Daddy’s head, it flings the boat to one side. We’re both hurled into the water. I hit the waves and bob to the surface.
The boat has rolled over on its side. Daddy reaches up and hangs on the wooden keel. The top side of the boat lowers, then levels with a splash! Daddy and I grip the side of the boat, ready to climb on. And then we remember…
“The phone. And the keys.” Daddy searches the murky waters.
“I told you to close the case!”
“Should I dive for them?”
“No way!” I pause and look up timidly. “Are… are there sharks in the water?” Daddy eyebrows furrow.
“You never know.” He gazes into the distance. “Pretend you’re in a boat and a shark is about to gobble you up. How do you survive?”
I stare blankly at him. “Daddy, stop pretending,” I whimper.
“Exactly!” He laughs. Huh? How does that make… Suddenly I burst out laughing. Relief fills me as I realize: of course, there are no sharks in a lake!
We returned to shore and loaded everything into the truck bed. Then we strolled down the paved country road, laughing about our adventure.
We spotted two ladies swimming in a large blue pool behind a tall black fence. Daddy explained our situation to them, and they gladly allowed our entrance. He borrowed their phone and dialed Mommy’s number to ask her to come pick us up and bring the spare truck key. While he called, I listened to the conversation between the women.
“Did they ever find out what happened to that poor man swimming in the lake?” asked one lady.
“Yeah, they found his body at the bottom. They say the only thing that could have made those bite marks is a shark.” The second lady waded to the edge of the pool.
“My friend told me that her friend said she saw it. She said her friend said it’s nearly fifty feet and it comes out every night!”
The second lady smirked. “What an exaggeration! But then again, more than one person’s gone missing since that man.”
“Boy, I’m glad we have a pool!”
The two ladies laughed.