I’m Drowning!
Questions:
1.
Where were you?
2.
Who were with you?
3.
What were you doing at that time?
4.
Describe the weather on that day.
5.
How did you start to drown?
6.
What did you do?
7.
What did you think about at that time of
drowning?
8.
Were you saved at the end?
9.
How did you feel after that?
10.
What lesson did you learn?
Where? / Who? / When?
At East Coast Beach/ Delta Swimming
Complex/ Safra (Mount Faber) swimming pool
Went for a swim with my family/
friends
Deep water
Parents sat far away from me when I was
swimming
|
What
happened?
Strong wind was blowing
Dark clouds formed in the sky
A small/ light drizzle
Did not bother, still wanted to swim
Swimming trunks/swimming
costume/float/goggles/ enjoying the cool/warm/refreshing/salty water,
Splashing, treading water/ creating
ripples in the water
Having a whale of a time
Sudden low tide
I was washed further away from shore
Turbulent currents became stronger
I had leg cramp, became numbed
Panicked and screamed loudly for help
Nobody was nearby
Felt frantic and desperate
Sinking and could not take in air
Waving/flailing my arms wildly/
Tried/struggled to keep my head above
water
Head bobbing up and down in the water
Out of breath
In trouble
|
How
did you feel after that?
Parents gave a sigh of relief
Thanked the lifeguard profusely
Phobia of swimming in the sea
Felt scared to go into the water
again
Parents stopped me from swimming in
the big sea
|
How
the problem was resolved?
A male passer-by heard my screams for
help
Alerted a burly/ muscular life guard
Galvanised into action
Swam towards me and pulled me to shore
I swallowed a lot of water
My parents saw me about to drown
their heart somersaulted
cold sensation hit them
their heart would probably seize up
a sense of foreboding settled over
them
Lifeguard applied artificial
resuscitation on me
I coughed out water
|
On a scorching hot day,
my parents took my brother and I to Sentosa Siloso Beach for a picnic.
When we reached our destination, we quickly found a shady tree to put down
our picnic stuff. My brother and I were very excited to start swimming. We
quickly changed into our swimming costumes and ran towards the sea. The water
was very calm at that time. We enjoyed splashing and treading water and
watching the ripples forming in the water.
After having a whale of a time playing and swimming in the water, my leg
suddenly became numbed. I had a leg cramp. I panicked and screamed for help.
Alas! My brother was quite far from me. He did not seem to hear my cry for
help.
My head bobbed up and down in the water. I swallowed a lot of the salty sea
water.
After
what seemed like hours of struggling in the water, a hand suddenly grabbed me.
My brother had come to my rescue!
He lifted my head out of the water and
pulled me to shore. After laying me on the sandy shore, he applied artificial
resuscitation on me and I coughed out water. By then, my parents saw what had
transpired and rushed towards us.
“Peter, are you all right?” my
mother asked anxiously as she crouched next to me. I grimaced and howled in
pain, gesturing to my legs. My mother shot a reproachful
look at my brother, while my father stood over us, his brow creased and his
face ashen. My brother thought, “Why did I not keep a close eye on my brother?”
Guilt gnawed at him from the inside and he hung his head low. He
rubbed my numbed leg to ease the pain there.
Gradually, I stopped groaning and my face
visibly relaxed. My parents heaved a huge sigh of relief.
I had suffered a leg cramp because I swam
too vigorously and was not properly hydrated before the swim.
I subsequently apologised to my parents
for causing them such great anxiety.
After that frightening incident when I almost
drowned, I refused to venture anywhere near a waterbody for the next
month in fear that the same thing would happen to me. However, I gradually
recovered my nerve and slowly picked up swimming again.