Drowning

Yesterday, a man drowned. And I was there when it happened.

Ed and I went to Burger's Lake in Forth Worth. It's a great little lake for anyone who is looking for a nice family environment. They check coolers on the way in for alcohol. That bumps them up like 10 billion points in my book. Anyway, we had my sister in law and her 3 kids with us and a couple of friends met us there. We had spent a nice fun day in the water and having lunch. Our friends had just left and I was playing with my niece when I think it all began to happen...I saw a man hit the high dive on his back, looked away, and when I looked back it was all over. I didn't see where he went or if he was okay. A little voice in my head told me to go tell someone what I saw. About 5 minutes later, the lifeguards were blowing their whistles like crazy and an announcement came for everyone to get out of the water. We all got out and they dragged a man to one of the beach areas where they began CPR. The park - that had been filled out sounds joy - was strangely quiet as many watched. There was a hush over the crowd of people who surrounded the perimeter of the lake. We decided to get the kids back to the picnic area and away from the lake because they were starting to ask some questions. We got everything packed up to go and waited for the announcement from the ownership letting us know that we could leave the park. Sirens came and went (giving us hope that he was still alive). The announcement came shortly after that they were closing for the rest of the day because the life guards were not in any condition to keep watch after what they had just been through.

We made it home and I waited anxiously until the news came on. There was a brief report giving very few details, but the reporter did say that the man was pronounced dead when he arrived at the hospital. I was devastated to hear that. My mind was racing to try and remember all the details of the man I saw hit the diving board. What color shorts was he wearing, what did he look like...In my mind it was the same person, but all I remember was seeing the yellow shorts of the man lying on the beach. I have wracked my brain until I'm nearly worn out trying to make sense of it all and to think if I could have done something. The details continue to blur even as I'm trying to bring them into focus. One of the things that upset me the most was that I got to go home with my husband yesterday afternoon. I got to have dinner with him last night. I got to wake up with him beside me this morning. That man's wife didn't get any of those things.

Ed found an article this afternoon giving some details about the event, but not much more than we already knew after the news report yesterday. A friend of ours said she heard he had a heart attack. The images are burned into my mind and they keep replaying over and over at a moments notice, but I can't figure it all out. I don't know if the man I saw on the diving board was the same man or if this was another man. All I know to do now is to pray for the family - that they will find peace and solace in the midst of their pain. I can share God's love with the people I meet. I can make sure my husband knows each and every day how much I love him.