Freida Doe

English 101

Hale

Narrative Essay

            “All aboard,” I yelled as my sister, cousins, and I climbed into an inflatable raft in my grandma’s indoor pool.  The strong scent of chlorinated water stung on my tongue as I kicked and splashed with my legs, attempting to climb into the raft with the others.  Our loud shrieks of laughter resounded loudly off of the high brick ceiling, walls, and humid air.  Reflections danced to and fro on the walls and ceiling while the morning sunlight streamed through the elaborate skylights and stained glass windows.  I struggled to get into the raft, fighting my awkward and annoying Sesame Street water wings.  My cousin Tom was struggling with his own water wings, too.  I watched as he shrugged out of them.  He caught me watching him and quickly stuck a finger to his lips, daring me to tell on him.  I looked away and pretended not to notice him.  I didn’t want him to think I was a tattletale.  We were both inexperienced swimmers, and our parents forced us to wear the big bulky inflatable things in the pool.  I knew that I should tell on Tom but also knew that he would get mad at me and not want to play with me anymore if I did.

            We continued playing on the raft, rowing around the sparkling pool.  On about our thirtieth lap around, I noticed Tom was missing.  Ignoring the echoing shrieks and turbulent water, I quickly scanned the pool.  I didn’t see him anywhere.  I shrugged my shoulders and turned back to play with the others.  Then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw him.  His bright red Bermuda swim trunks made him easy to spot from his position at the bottom of the pool.            

             “Mom, Aunt Bonnie,” I screamed, my voice strained with panic. “Tom’s at the bottom of the pool and he’s not coming up!”  My aunt leaped up from her chair and did a running dive into the warm water for her son, clothes and all.  She came up moments later with Tom dangling limply in her arms. 

            My sister, other cousin, and I all stared in horror as my aunt pulled Tom out of the water.  His whole body was shriveled.   His lips were bright blue and his hands hung down limply from his sides.  They rolled him onto a patio cushion from a nearby table and started doing weird things with him.  They were pushing on his chest, counting, and blowing into his mouth. 

            “Call an ambulance!” my aunt yelled frantically, her voice cracking.  “He’s not breathing, and I can’t find a pulse!”  I continued to stare as my aunt kept on pushing on Tom’s chest and putting her fingers on his wrist.  I had always wondered what would happen if I took off my Sesame Street water wings.  Now I knew.  Tom looked so dead and lifeless that it seemed impossible that he was the same boy who, five minutes earlier, I had been playing with on the raft.

            My grandma took us three kids into the kitchen, so we wouldn’t have to watch them beat on poor Tom’s chest and blow into his mouth.  The kitchen seemed so quiet, warm, and faraway from everything that was happening out by the pool.  We all sat up straight in our chairs, covered in goosebumps and shivering as the water dripped off of our wet bodies onto the dry floor.  My grandma brought us some Oreo Cookies and warm milk to calm us down.  I grabbed a cookie and took a bite.  It tasted like sawdust on my tongue and seemed to take forever for me to chew and swallow.  The warm milk tasted like the nasty cough syrup that my mom used to make me take when I was sick. 

“Let’s pray a quick prayer for Tom,” my grandma said.  Her voice sounded weird, all wobbly and shaky.  I think she was scared too.  As my grandma prayed with us for Tom, my mind started wandering back to that humid, echoing poolroom.  I had watched Tom take off his water wings and not said a thing about it.  I opened my eyes a little and peeked at my cousin, sister, and grandma.  They all had their eyes shut.  I wondered if they knew that I saw Tom take off his water wings.  Tears started to form in my eyes as I thought about how disappointed everyone would be if they knew that all of this happened because of me.  They would probably hate me for the rest of my life. 

    The paramedics came next.  We could hear their loud sirens as they pulled up into the driveway.   I could hear their voices as they entered the house and came running through the kitchen on their way to the pool.  One big man dressed in what looked like a police officer’s uniform took over the funny-looking job of pounding on Tom’s chest and blowing into his mouth.  I heard someone shout that they finally were able to get my Tom’s heart to beat again.  My grandma allowed us to go back out by the pool then.  I quietly walked over and sat down at the edge of the pool.  The heated floor felt warm on my wet bottom as I dangled my legs over the side.  I sat there and watched as Tom threw up lots and lots of water.  I don’t think that I’d seen someone throw up so much stuff before.   I hung my head down and stared into the dancing water.  It proved to be a momentary distraction.  I looked up and glanced over at my mom and grandma. They both gave me worried, yet reassuring smiles.  As the big man dressed in the funny police officer’s uniform wheeled my cousin out on a stretcher, I refused to watch or look at my cousin.  I just sat on the edge of the pool and continued to stare into the waving water.