Someone drowned.
I wish it wasn't so. But it was. A RED/PURPLE flag flew today. And that meant rip tide, and nasty critters. The nasty critters were enough to keep me out of the water.
The rip tides were the rest of the story.
A man drowned.
Why?
He went in to help his sons who had been swept of in a rip tide.
He went down for 30 minutes... others rescued.... the boys are safe.
The boys no longer have a father.
The wife no longer a husband.
The ocean is an unpredictable mistress.
The ocean killed today.
And I, what do I do with that? Nothing? No. There is pain, and sadness. There is the memory of his prone body being brought to shore on a surf board by two other rescuers, heroes. And there is the memory of asking, do you need a nurse? For I had just met one today, sitting and chatting in the sun and surf. But no. They didn't.
There is the memory of his prone body, pushed into a fetal position. His wife and another nurse hovering over him. And the rescue people coming to perform CPR on him.
I thought he was okay. I went back to my turf to tell my family, "be careful."
They, we, all of us, we believed the man was okay because the rescue people were trying to "help" him. But really, he was already dead. They were only acting like he could be saved to keep the hysteria down. Later on, I learned the truth when two red flags were displayed and another family said, "a man drowned today."
I can't fathom being a rescue worker doing this kind of work.
I can fathom the pain of loss.
So to that family, my extreme sympathies and condolences...
2 comments:
How horrible :(. The Gulf of Mexico is supposed to be so calm and then something like that, that you expect at Great Falls, but not with the calm waters of the Gulf. So sorry you had to witness that and have it be part of your vacation. Hugs!
It was sad. But the flags were posted: RED OVER PURPLE. Red meant hazardous conditions, and purple meant jelly fish. We had already told DD not to go past her upper thighs earlier that day. She was miffed, but this was a reminder to her that her parents aren't being fuddy duddies when we impose restrictions.
The gulf coast is usually calm, but October is a transitional season, so anything is possible. And, as always, mother ocean is a volatile creature. Nature is unpredictable.
We're having a wonderful time... despite this sadness. Last night we went to a fun Mexican restaurant and had dinner for the same amount of money as it cost for a bottle of wine at another place we went to. Today is iffy weather, so we are shopping the outlets.
Hope all is well with you, too!! Hugs back.
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