Fear…..

During the June holidays, my friends and I went to a beach. We were all whirling with excitement. The weather was balmy. We quickly changed into swimming attire and entered the sea. As the cool water touched my body, I could feel adrenaline rushing over my entire body. For a few hours, we swam and played in the sea. Evening came upon us quite suddenly. One of my friends, Gina, suggested playing a ball game. My other friends, who were exhausted, said they would go and get some drinks. While they were away, Gina and I began playing the game.
For few minutes, laughter filled the beach. The game was really exciting. But when Gina hit the ball so hard that it arrived at the deeper side of the sea, things started to go wrong. To get the ball, I swam towards it. Gina advised me to be careful as wind was blowing hard. Confident in swimming, I ignored her advice and swam faster without hesitation. When my hand was about to reach the ball, a strong wind blew towards my side and there was an aggressive wave which sent me about a metre away. A sudden fear hit me. I was unable to control my body. The wave continued and I was going further and further from the ball. My breath was stolen as a wave gushed over me. I coughed and choked, called out for help but there was no answer. Helpless, I struggled with all my might but was fruitless. My heart was thumping hard as I tried to grasp at the waves like straws. The wave became stronger and I felt being pulled further and further deeper. I felt tears in my eyes. I was fearful. “Am I dying like this?” I asked myself.
I drank a lot of seawater and felt dizzy and nauseous. My head was sinking. At that moment, a panorama, showing precious moments of my life, starting from when I was a baby, swept through my mind. I could not hear anything except my breath in the sea. I was crying as I imagined my parents crying sorrowfully at my dead body. Suddenly, a strong power overwhelmed me. “I am going to survive!” I thought fearlessly. Then, suddenly, a hand pulled me out of the water. A lifeguard was there! He was immensely strong. He locked an arm around my neck and swam towards the beach.
When I came to, I was in the hospital. My parents were sitting next to me, worried. When I woke up, my parents heaved a sigh of relief and embraced me tightly. I was rescued by the lifeguard who was informed by Gina and he issued me a stern warning not to go too deep in the sea again. I vowed not to do the same mistake ever.
I learnt from that incident that overcoming fear is a challenge more than just overcoming the sea.



By. Kim Seong Hyeon...!!