camel lake
when i was younger, probably about eight years old, i was at my grandmothers cottage on a rather typical muskoka sunny afternoon. down at the dock i was playing with the various toys that she had amassed over the years. water wings, flutter boards, and basic snorkeling gear were all to be found in mildewy tupperware bins at the side of the lake, just under an old maple tree.
i would spend hours, even though much to old for them, rooting through these old bins finding toy trucks, sailboats, sand castle excavating equipment, and just about anything else a young man's imagination could wish for.
i had started swimming around and had brought some of the treasures up onto the main dock where i was pulling them into the water and examining each's ability to float on their own. it became apparent rather quickly that dump trucks floated far less effectively than sailboats, a fact of which i was already aware, but enjoyed proving to myself nonetheless.
now i'm sure you have seen the specific toy i am about to talk about. it is more suited for toddlers than for an eight (?) year old like myself. it's kind of like a little raft that is in the shape of a turtle. it has two handles on the top side and in the middle there is a large opening with a mesh basket that has two holes in it for one's legs. i decided that even at my ripe old age, the raft would definitely support me and i decided to give it a try.
i stepped up onto the dock and positioned the turtle right by the side, floating straight outwards to the middle of the lake. carefully i stepped off the dock and put my right leg into the far leg hole. i then proceeded to step off with the other foot and place it in the adjacent hole.
i am not exactly sure what happened next, but within seconds the turtle went belly up with me on the underside. i was trapped in legholes far to small for me and was positioned almost vertically upside down in warm camel lake water. i struggled to rear my head back up above, but every time i did, the natural force of the buoyant turtle kept sending me right back down. it was almost like a real life physics lesson, and newton had never been so happy. my legs were trapped and i could not breathe. i fought for what seemed like hours underneath the water. legs flailing up in the air, i'm sure it must have looked quite silly to anyone looking on. but no one was.
after what seemed like forever, i managed to grasp the side of the dock and pull myself out. exhausted from my battle for survival i laid on the dock and slowly slid my feet out from the offending holes.
no one had noticed what had happened, and i've never really told anyone about it until right now. i felt very stupid for trying to fit into something that, even at the time, knew was to small for me. as desperately as i wanted to get into the turtle, it just wasn't the right fit. i had grown out of it far too long ago, and wiser boys than i would have seen it right from the start.
i would spend hours, even though much to old for them, rooting through these old bins finding toy trucks, sailboats, sand castle excavating equipment, and just about anything else a young man's imagination could wish for.
i had started swimming around and had brought some of the treasures up onto the main dock where i was pulling them into the water and examining each's ability to float on their own. it became apparent rather quickly that dump trucks floated far less effectively than sailboats, a fact of which i was already aware, but enjoyed proving to myself nonetheless.
now i'm sure you have seen the specific toy i am about to talk about. it is more suited for toddlers than for an eight (?) year old like myself. it's kind of like a little raft that is in the shape of a turtle. it has two handles on the top side and in the middle there is a large opening with a mesh basket that has two holes in it for one's legs. i decided that even at my ripe old age, the raft would definitely support me and i decided to give it a try.
i stepped up onto the dock and positioned the turtle right by the side, floating straight outwards to the middle of the lake. carefully i stepped off the dock and put my right leg into the far leg hole. i then proceeded to step off with the other foot and place it in the adjacent hole.
i am not exactly sure what happened next, but within seconds the turtle went belly up with me on the underside. i was trapped in legholes far to small for me and was positioned almost vertically upside down in warm camel lake water. i struggled to rear my head back up above, but every time i did, the natural force of the buoyant turtle kept sending me right back down. it was almost like a real life physics lesson, and newton had never been so happy. my legs were trapped and i could not breathe. i fought for what seemed like hours underneath the water. legs flailing up in the air, i'm sure it must have looked quite silly to anyone looking on. but no one was.
after what seemed like forever, i managed to grasp the side of the dock and pull myself out. exhausted from my battle for survival i laid on the dock and slowly slid my feet out from the offending holes.
no one had noticed what had happened, and i've never really told anyone about it until right now. i felt very stupid for trying to fit into something that, even at the time, knew was to small for me. as desperately as i wanted to get into the turtle, it just wasn't the right fit. i had grown out of it far too long ago, and wiser boys than i would have seen it right from the start.
posted by the ghostwolf at 1:35 AM
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