This is a true story, from a real person.
About
fifty years ago,
my family moved from Oklahoma to Texas after my dad was offered a
position as pastor of a nice big church in Irving. At
that point in my life
moving to "the big city" was very exciting, since until
then
my days had been spent on the simple things found in rural
small town USA... collecting turtles from the side of the road
probably topped my list of most enjoyable activities.
Upon
arrival in Texas, one of the first things that was done to keep us
kids occupied was to join the local YMCA. Many great days were spent
at the Y over the next several years, however not every experience
was a good one.
One
day when
my brother and I were probably about 5 and 6 years old, it was
decided we needed to learn to swim. Sounded great to us, so plans
were made, and we anxiously
awaited our first class.
That
day arrived, and we all hopped in the car and drove to the YMCA. The
instructor greeted
us, and told the parents to be back in an hour. Little brother and I
were led to the pool by this swimming teacher. As
we stepped up next to the pool, without warning, this genius pushed
me into the 10' deep end. I quickly found myself sinking directly to
the bottom. Nothing I could think of to get myself back to the
surface worked, and intense
panic set in. About
the time
thoughts of drowning crossed my mind, the teacher jumped in and
pulled me to safety.
Goes
without saying,
if I could get
a hold of
that instructor today, God knows what I might do to him. Because of
his idiocy, I literally spent decades petrified
of being in water more than chin deep. Yes, I learned to swim, but it
was a chore
for a person who could not float.
One
day 25 years later, I was invited to "test drive" a new
custom made sailboat. Not knowing what to expect, I was more than a
little concerned
when
I got to the cold mountain lake in Utah, and was greeted by a "kit
made" tiny boat... barely
looked large enough to support
me, let alone two of us. Asked the guy if he really knew what he was
doing, and was
assured
he did. Of course, my first
reaction
was to back out, but these were my "macho" days, and ego
wouldn't
allow
me to open myself up to ridicule.
Initially
things went just fine, until a big gust hit us... out in the middle
of this large lake. The boat basically fell apart around us. Within
two minutes
we were clinging to the remains dog paddling for our lives. Yes, we
had life jackets on, but they just don't do a lot of good for me.
About
the time I had begun to consider
the possibility of drowning since my legs were losing their ability
to kick from the cold and strength draining,
a boat happened by. Not sure why the guy didn't haul us on board, but
he did tie on to the remains of the sailboat and tow us in. That was
the longest ten minutes of my life. Once on shore,
my legs were toast, and I had to drag myself with my arms.
Strangely
enough, I lost my horrific
fear of the water that day. Funny what surviving a very harrowing
event can do for the human mind.
Ordering Ideas: Useful vocabulary:
Ordering Ideas: Useful vocabulary:
About ... (years) ago keep...occupied=keep busy
At that point(in my life) anxiously=impatiently
Until then be led to=take(sb)somewhere
One day when greet=say hello
As intense=powerful
At about that time it goes without saying=you can easily understand
When get a hold on(sb)=get (sb)
Initially=at first petrified=very scared
Within...(two minutes) chore=a task that needs to be done but it's not very pleasant
contribute=do my part
concerned=worried
barely=almost not at all
assured=certain
reaction=act on something that is happening
back out=not do something
allow=let
ridicule=embarrass very much
consider=think
drain=empty
horrific=very scary
harrowing=painful
Homework:
Write your own sports story.
use at least 3 words from "useful vocabulary" and 3 words from "ordering ideas"
