Creeping into the water

Trip Start May 25, 2005
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Trip End Ongoing


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Flag of South Africa  ,
Tuesday, September 4, 2007

The staff pool is trashed. The elephants drink out of it everyday now, which also means they pee in in while they are drinking, they blow gunk down their trunks into it and we can't step in to it! Not that there is much water there now, and it is all rather green and bubbly. So my options are limited, but today was a 32 degree day. Yesterday it was winter, so it has all come as a bit of a shock. Just feeling warm air surrounding my shoulders made me feel hope that summer is on its way. With Sping Day been and gone, things are bloomin, and today I was bloomin hot!

So, I got in the bakkie and drove to the tourist pool. I hoped that no one was there, but a couple of elderly groups were lazing on the loungers. I felt daft as I touched the water with my toe. What was I thinking; that one day of sunshine would make it bareably warm? But no. It was cold....and not just in comparison with the air. It was just about the same temperature as it had been all through winter, which I finally gave up trying to do my laps in during June.
Shit. What now? I fingered the goggles I had in my hand, staring at the pool. I couldn't just walk away. So I sat down and slowly edged my way over the side and in to the deep end. From there I had nowhere to go. Colder, colder, colder I became. My breath felt sharp and my ribs ached. So I breathed a few deep breathes and submerged myself, coasting underwater to the shallow end. I had forgotten how good it feels to be surrounded by water. After a few minutes the temperature became bareable again, and my breathing and breast stroke returned like an old friend. Ducking, maintaining a line, pushing, cruising.....my soul was revived. And after 20 minutes of splashing around I smiled.....swimming season was back and day one had been a long-needed exuberance.

Now, how to get rid of those elephants? I want the pool back!
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