Quicksand

I am reminded of the time SISTA and I got sucked into quicksand.  It was a scary yet funny experience. And I am not sure what the lesson therein was, but I remember it fondly, as though such trying times can cause such a stir in your heart and soul because in retrospect that sudden fear seems hilarious.  

We were with our parents on holiday, and we were staying in a beautiful lodge that overlooked the ocean.  The lodges were standing at the edge of a lagoon, and Melissa, being the more adventurous of the two, decided we should go paddling on a boat, just on the lagoon which snaked into a river.  The river led us to an island where we stopped the boat and hooked it on a tree branch to make sure it would not be swept away.  What would we do if our boat would disappear into the river and be washed to sea? We never thought we might disappear into the river and be washed to sea.

We had paddled with the stream, so it was easy.  It was late afternoon, so we weren't scorched by the sun either.  And the little island we had discovered was a treasure trove of little stones that glistened and shone in the afternoon sun.  After we had walked along the beach, Little Sister was getting anxious to get back, so Big Sister humoured Little Sister and brought her back to the shore where they had left the boat, and there it was - the boat was still rocking on the still waves of the river. 
 
Melissa went first.  She had to pull the boat in a little bit, as it had drifted into the water, but was still attached to the tree.  As she stepped into the water, she screamed, "Aah!" It was a quick and earnest shriek.  "What's wrong?" I exclaimed, thinking something had bit her.  She shrieked again, lifting her legs high.  In my panic, I rushed towards her, thinking a snake, maybe even an anaconda, was nibbling at her feet, or some spiky sea monster was having a go at her.  So in I jumped, only to experience the most sinking feeling in the world - quicksand!  

Quicksand sucks you in and before you know it, you are knee deep in the sand, forever sinking. Impulsively you jump up only to land deeper in the sand, as you have placed more weight on the ground beneath you, but to simply sink is too daunting to contemplate.  The boat had come undone with all the splashing, and Melissa exclaimed, "Oh no!" But then, just as I thought, "This is it!  We are going to be killed by sand!", Big Sister miraculously grabbed the boat and brought it to shore while I was still hopping up and down trying to get out of the quicksand.  My sister dragged me out of there as quickly as she could - I am sure to an onlooker it looked like tug of war of arms - and pulled me into that boat, and when a big motor boat came, she flagged them down. 

I had wanted to row back without their help, but thank God for Big Sister's common sense.  The wind had picked up, we had been rowing against the stream, and the waves were dragging us backwards, whilst the dark was coming in.  So there we were, two saved souls tied to the back of a motorboat, grateful to be alive, and on safe waters once more.  And when we got back to our lodge, we really did appreciate the view a whole lot more.  


Comments

Anonymous said…
Hey Sis!
No need to feel embarrassment!
I laughed my head off at that one! Yes it was funny and scarry all at the same time!
James and I are starting our own blog pages - one for him and one for me. I shall keep you updated as to how we get on. It is way more complicated than we had anticipated!
Love your writing!
Keep it up!

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