{"id":1408,"date":"2022-02-05T19:08:00","date_gmt":"2022-02-05T19:08:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.todayatthelakeblog.com\/?p=1408"},"modified":"2022-02-05T19:08:00","modified_gmt":"2022-02-05T19:08:00","slug":"water-that-heals-as-i-go","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/todayatthelake.blog\/?p=1408","title":{"rendered":"“Water that Heals as I Go”"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

February 5, 2022  6pm | water temp 40F<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Today at the lake, the water was glassy, the mountains where trying to peek out from behind the clouds, and the ducks were pecking the pebbles on the beach, looking for snacks. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Heavy Thoughts To Start<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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Videotaping the quiet water. I had no idea til now that I had an X on my bum!<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

I was sad when M picked me up today. I had planned on getting up in time for a livestream of a college classmate\u2019s funeral, then got the day wrong. So when I woke up and realized what day it was I grabbed my phone to look for the video, started playing it, knowing M would arrive in a few minutes. I made a mental note to come back and watch the video tonight, but I suddenly felt off balance and angry. Heavy. Along with F\u2019s funeral today, there have been many FB posts about another classmate, L, passing in January. I knew F as a friendly acquaintance back in the day, and had struck up a FB friendship with him about a year ago, so excited to learn about all the incredible things he\u2019d been doing since I last saw him. <\/p>\n\n\n

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Water so calm<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Why do the very best people die? I feel like it has been this way for about eight or nine years. Every year one, two, three people lost. Some very close friends, some classmates I haven\u2019t seen in years, others acquaintances. All of them kind, generous, smart, funny, hard working, the people who made a difference in SO MANY other lives, families, communities. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I threw my gear into my bag and got my wetsuit halfway on, thinking that if the sun would come out during my swim I could do a sunbeam funnel ritual for F and L. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back to Summer Beach<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

M brought me to my summer beach spot, so I was very excited to swim there. The swim area is much bigger and the water is much clearer than the small beach close to mi casa. There were people at the park, walking and jogging on the paths, wandering along the beach, sitting on the picnic tables. It was a bit past four, but we still had plenty of light left. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

We timed it today: it take seven minutes for me to get those $%^&# gloves on. There was nobody in the water, and no boats, so I just waded in and started walking north to acclimate. Every few seconds I plopped all the way in to get my face wet, then I just started swimming \u2014 the usual start, stop, pull-up. It take so much longer in cold water to get my face acclimated. But I did it in about 10 tries, and then I swam as far as I could south, just making it past the boundaries of the swim area. I know this because I saw the underwater markers where they attach the corner ropes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

There were some birds north of the swim area that were dunking their heads into the water, revealing their white underbellies. I thought, \u201cwell, it\u2019s cold enough for penguins.\u201d And it was cold. The thinnest part of the wetsuit: the arms. I felt the cold the entire time I was swimming but it wasn\u2019t unpleasant. Just something to note.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Getting Acclimated<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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