responsibility

Hello everybody!

My name is Reazor and Responsibility is my story. One day, after reading my friend's e-mail about her activities at the beach, it reminded me a time when I last went swimming, but after the drowning experience that I had with my cousin Minami about ten years ago, I rarely swim, but just playing in the water near the coast. Of course, I still remember the accident.

I graduated from High School and found a job at a bank while Minami was still studying in High School. I had learn swimming from a swimming program funded by one of the government's organization, and Minami was learning swimming from school.

One hot sunny summer day (summer vacation), we went to the beach with my own sister, Minami, and her two sisters (my cousins), and of course, myself. Minami's mother asked me to take good care of my cousins because I was the oldest one on
the group, and I assured her that I would do so.

When we reached the beach, I enjoyed swimming for quiet a while and I saw my sister with Minami's two sisters enjoying kicking and splashing the water with their upper bodies leaning over the big floating bed we brought we us. On the other side, Minami got hold of the floating bed's side and kicking the water with her legs. At that time, I thought she could swim, so I yelled at her from a distance that she should swim and not to rely too much on the floating bed or else, we will never know how to swim. Oh my God, something really bad had happened. Obviously, I made a very very big mistake because I had overestimated her swimming abilities. Very shortly, afterwards, she couldn't manage to keep her head up for breathing and began struggling in the water.

I was so frightened that I rushed to her and tried to get her up. Yet, out of panics, she dragged me down and then I started choking half way to death because I was not able to breathe. I though that we both would die at that time. The only terrible problem was that I couldn't face my aunt if Minami died, so I had a thought that I would not let myself live if I lost Minami. But the suffocating suffering pushed me up again for a deep breath and dived again into the water to try to push her up. The worst thing was, she did not cry for help when she had her head above the water. So I struggled myself up above the water and started shouting for help. Thanks God two men heard my cry and rushed to grabbed us up and fetched us to the coast and left after making sure that we were fine on our own.

We were too exhausted to utter "thanks" but lying on the beach until we got back our breath and left for home. Of course, we did not tell her mother about this incident. After that, I could not swim anymore because I was haunted by this accident.

The end.

Written by: Reazor