our lake

We live near a lake. We go there all the time.

Arggh. Where do I start this story?

We got Wyatt two remote control boats for his birthday. The first time we took one of them to the lake it was so much fun! We had a blast taking turns zipping that little boat across the water. We took both boats out last night. There was so much moss in the water though. I didn't take long until both boats were stuck. We tried to free them, but the steering was messed up and they would get stuck again. Eventually the batteries died. Lincoln took a dive into the lake to go get them.

We laughed. Wyatt called out, "Watch out for snapping turtles."

Lincoln got the first boat, and started to swim for the second. After he got that one I saw him flip onto his back so he could swim with both boats in his hands. I looked around for a minute, and talked to the kids a bit. Then I heard Lincoln yell for help. REALLY yell for HELP. I couldn't decide if he was kidding. I asked him if he was serious, and he said "YES!!!". I still didn't believe him, even though he kept yelling. Lincoln is a very strong swimmer. I thought he was just trying to see if I would jump in the lake. I did jump in, but thought it was a terrible joke "if" he was kidding. I kicked off my shoes, and basically ran off the dock. I hit the water with my eyes open and worried about my contacts for a second. Then I began to swim...dog paddle really. I left my three children on the dock. I didn't even tell them to stay put.

I am not a strong swimmer, but to make matters worse I was wearing a maxi dress. The dress would stretch and scoop under my feet, so it felt like I was uselessly kicking in a bubble. I kept having to reach and pull it up to free my legs. I was about half way to Lincoln when I saw his head go under the water. This is the moment I KNEW it was not a trick to get me in that gross water. I kicked and did whatever worked with my arms as hard as I could. I felt useless as I swam. How would I be any help? Really. He weighs 100 pounds more than I do, and I stink at swimming. I reached him and asked how I could help. I thought I may have to dive under to free his feet.

He said, "Just lift me up!"

I reached under his arm and pushed. When I did this I went under. This a very vivid picture in my head. I saw brown cloudy water dabbled with green bands, at the top of this brown blur was a band of clearer water. Just above that band was Lincoln's head above the surface. I came up. I was terrified and as we took a few turns under the water. I truly thought we might not make it out of the water, and our children would watch us drown. Lincoln could not kick his legs, he was tangled in moss. I was getting tired, and kept pushing Lincoln up and kept reaching and pulling at my dress so I could kick. Lincoln was still in a state of panic, and yelled for people to help us. I said, "No----- I've got you, lets turn on our backs and see if we can float."

We did. I reached for a clearer area , and we slowly started kicking back toward the dock....where our three children and three women were watching us. The bands of moss gathered around the crown of my head as we clung together and kicked. Finally clinging to the dock was a great feeling. Lincoln was pulled up first and as he came up out of the water my second super visual image comes to mind. He legs were covered in tons of moss, but there was fishing line wrapped around his knees, then around his calves, and then around one or both ankles.

"Your legs are tangled in fishing line," I told him. He didn't hear me.

A woman started to help me up, and I found a place to grip in between the boards. I noticed my wedding ring. It was green and fuzzy. I felt Lincoln's hands around my shoulder and the two of them pulled me up together. I was so weak, and my heart was pounding. I couldn't believe what had just happened. I don't know why I stood, but I leaned down a bit and looked at Lincoln lying on the dock with his hands holding his head. He said, "I will marry you again."

The three ladies on the dock laughed. I leaned down and held his face, and tried to wipe some of the green fuzz from his goatee. I stayed on my knees and tried to slow my breathing. My kids were worried about the boat that was still in the water. I don't think they really understood the severity of the situation. We heard sirens coming, and Lincoln wanted to get up and look "okay" so we didn't have to go to the hospital. We headed to the top of the ramp. Lincoln hugged me tight. He told me that he was so grateful for me, and that he loved me so much. I jumped in the lake for him he kept saying. (I heard him tell someone on the phone later that "his scrawny wife" jumped in the lake and saved him. His first call for help was toward a man on the running path and he just ran right past him.) I told him that I felt so scared swimming toward him, and that I thought wouldn't be able to do anything to help him. He said I did exactly what he needed, and he called me his hero.