To Swim Or Not To Swim ~ Part III
So yesterday was D-DAY ! Madame Instructress dropped the bombshell !
"Today we're gonna put down our boards and we're gonna ———" Gonna what ?? Swim without a board ? Never . Negatory . Nooit . Not gonna happen . Not in this lifetime . Read my lips . THE BOARD STAYS .
Meanwhile , Madame Instructress smiles , graciously . My heart is thumping , louder and louder . She's gotta be kidding me ! I had been doing fairly well up until that point (with the help of the board , of course). I had managed to keep my head under water , simultaneously kicking my legs and propelling my body forward ! And all this with my eyes open . For me , that was MAJOR progress .
To cut a long story short . I have a vivid recollection of the SECOND lesson WITHOUT the board .
Madame Instructress : How are you today ?
(What a question . What do you think ?)
Me : I've been better , thanks .
(Actually , I think I've relapsed . Back to square 1.)
Madame Instructress : And so have I … been better , I mean …
Me : Oh , have you been ill ?
(She seemed okay at the last lesson . Though I can't really remember …)
Madame Instructress : Not really . Just nursing a tender patch on my arm (points to her upper arm)
I notice faint , blue marks on her upper arm .
Me : Oh , did you fall again ?
(She does seem to be accident-prone . Was even knocked over by one of the kids she tutors .)
Madame Instructress : No . This is where you gripped me . Held on for dear life . Panicked when you couldn't feel the wall in front of you .
I feel terrible . Embarrassed .
I apologise , profusely ! That first lesson without the board is just a blur . But the marks on the upper arm say it all .
Me : It's a wonder you didn't charge me for GBH ? (Trying desperately to lighten the moment of awkwardness …)
AND BY THE WAY , I HOPE THAT PUT A SMILE ON YOUR DIAL . AND I HOPE THE SMILE IS ONE OF SUPPORT FOR MY AMBITION – NOT FOR ANY OTHER REASON … LOL …
I write by the seat of my pants no matter what I start out doing.
I really admire you pantsers … I’m an out-and-out plotter … have to have a solid guideline .
That's nothing. 😀
When I was eleven, I nearly drowned my 42 year old instructor because he forced me into the deep end. I'm terrified of deep water. I learned to control it, though.
Well , I’ve come a long way … not as scared as I used to be … though I still have a long way to go … 🙂
when i was 12, a friend of my aunts was trying to teach me how to swim. i slipped though, and she tried to save me, but I ended up almost drowning her–and the guy who tried to help us both. so yeah, i still don't know how to swim 😀
nutschell
http://www.thewritingnut.com
Well , I don’t feel so bad then ! I am convinced that I’m one of the only people in the world who can’t swim !