Waking up yesterday on the lake was one of life’s simple pleasures. I opened the blinds, and looked out to see the sun high above the water (sleeping in is also one of life’s simple pleasures). Stephanie and I ate breakfast with her family, then she taught me how to paddleboard.
For those not in the know, paddleboards are bigger surfboards with a greater ability to balance. You’re supposed to stand upright on them, propelling yourself across the water with an oar, looking a little like Jesus on a Segway. My comparison to Jesus is intentional, because watching Stephanie navigate gracefully over the water looked like some kind of supernatural miracle. And I very rarely experience miracles.
Since I can barely swim in an ocean with high buoyancy levels, I knew death was immanent if I fell off the paddleboard. On went my lifejacket, and then Stephanie helped me kneel on my paddleboard. I moved forward with my oar, and she praised me very highly, like a child taking their first shaking steps. Like a child, I blossomed under her praise and stopped sitting on my heels, balancing on my knees instead.
It Is Trish 