Perspective (7)

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Seventh Installment

Deborah’s heart sank. The dream of swimming free at Concord Lake was dashed, but she felt, after all the distress she had caused, that she owed it to her sister and everyone else to acquiesce. So, she promised, relieved that Meredith had not been angrier. The conversation ended with a silent hug, but the inner turmoil, for herself and, she suspected, for Meredith, would continue.

Swimming back and forth along the shoreline, with everyone watching her like a hawk, had no appeal whatsoever, but she decided to take one last swim before the vacation ended. She had heard that Alex lost his favorite T-shirt in his brief attempt to swim to her rescue. When he tore it off and flung it toward the dock, it had been carried by the wind and sucked under by the waves. All attempts to find it had failed. It was black and had sunk out of sight to the mucky bottom of the lake.

But Deborah wasn’t ready to give up. No one else had goggles. Hers might give her a better chance. Without telling anyone what she was doing, she donned her bathing suit, lime green cap, and Speedo goggles and waded out into the lake. The sun sparkled on the gentle waves, relaxed voices echoed from the cabin porch, and Jiffy sat alert beside Roxy’s chair at the tip of the dock. She paddled around for a few minutes and then began diving beneath the surface, going as deep as she could and staying under as long as she dared. She interspersed the dives with gentle stroking, checked to see if Roxy looked comfortable, and then dived again. It took fifteen minutes until she saw something out of place in the mud—a wrinkle, not a stick or a rock. When her pale hand reached through the murky water and clutched it, it came away from the bottom in a cloud of muck. She swam slowly to the dock and held the balled-up shirt before Roxy, smiling and placing a dripping finger on her closed lips. Roxy grinned.

Deborah rinsed out the shirt in the shallow water near the shore and held it up as she walked toward the porch. Alex stood as she approached. At first, he looked puzzled, but then recognition spread across his face. He said nothing, but reaching for the shirt, he wrung it tightly and walked silently to the clothesline. Meredith smiled, Tony looked sideways at Jason, who was playing games on his iPad, and Trisha got up to join Alex at the clothesline.

Deborah, also smiling, returned to the water to float on her back in the shallows, looking up at the deep blue sky and puffy white clouds.

The End

8 thoughts on “Perspective (7)”

  2. Hi Moriah – I tried to comment within the blog, but it didn’t work. I enjoyed your story and I think you came up with a nicely satisfying ending. Of course I would hope that next year Deborah would find a way to go on longer swims without scaring her relatives. By the way, are you a good swimmer? The very idea of swimming all the way across a lake is astonishing to me. – Carolyn

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    1. Thank you for reading and subscribing, Carolyn. Your comment did come through. Yes, I was a good swimmer. My capacity for distances has shrunk in the last couple of years, though. I hope you’ll continue to read and comment.

      Moriah

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  3. Hi, Moriah– I read the story with interest. I think you described the dilemmas for each person well, without expressing a feeling who was “at fault.” Being a cautious person myself, I didn’t understand why Deborah couldn’t wait until the next day to swim, when there wasn’t a threat of a storm. But that’s not who she is. Thank you for sharing in this way. Mary

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  4. Hi Moriah, I am up early and have had the pleasure of reading your story. What a good solid family…and it all makes sense. Their emotions ring true. My criticism was with first half of chapter 2. Some of your word choices seemed forced. The ear catching word “shot” appears 3 times. And I thought some sentences could be compressed. Otherwise, it reads well and presents believably divers reactions to a tough situation. I was surprised Deborah didn’t mention to her sister that the man on the far side of the lake closed his door on her as she emerged from the water…otherwise she would have tried to contact them.? Perhaps it wasn’t necessary…and she, herself, didn’t know how to interpret his gesture. Anyway, what a good story! Thank you so much for sharing. Marcia

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    1. And thank you so much for reading, Marcia, and commenting. I’ve fixed the “shot” repetition that you pointed out. And yes, I do tend to be wordy. Have to keep reminding myself. But I am glad you enjoyed it. I enjoyed working on it.

      Moriah

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