A Toss With A Kayak!

I remember the kayak was over us, just above our heads, wondering how I got in the water, arms raised up, holding on, trying to figure out how to get out of the situation we were in as I looked at my husband with a bit of fear.

We were in a quandary on whether to purchase a paddleboard or kayak as something else to do while we travel. Kayak or paddleboard - which would you choose? We rented a kayak, which is one of those where you sit on top, double seated, without feeling trapped by putting your legs in the kayak. Since it tends to be windy where we were at, we knew there was a short amount of time to paddle before the wind took over, so with kayak in our hands, we went to a nearby, small and shallow lake to try it out.

How the flags near us waved, sooner than expected, with a quick response to the ever-present wind in a small town. Back and forth, back and forth, with increasing velocity as time moved forward. I voiced concern to my husband as we were losing control of the kayak we were desperately trying to control. The wind was pushing us back to shore, but then pulling us out again. Then suddenly, whish! What happened?

We were under the kayak, a bit shaken, but very much alive. I do not remember being tossed, flipped over like a pancake, but not cooked to perfection, just under the kayak, a very heavy, hard kayak. With quick thinking skills my husband said to push the kayak with the strength I had left, up and over. Yes, we got the kayak flipped back over and we climbed into it, slowly but surely, the shakiness subsiding as we steered ourselves back to shore. Honestly, my husband was laughing quite a bit. Not funny!

But what happened was so quick that we did not have time to “defend” or “protect” ourselves. It happened so quickly that I did not even think about it or the moment right before getting tossed into water, feeling trapped by a hard kayak that probably weighs more than me. Would this be what death may feel like (without the suffering pain), that you forget the process and see yourself on the other side? Not sure if I have an answer for that, but one answer I do have: we ended up purchasing paddleboards!