Laundry Boy (Currently Editing)

Chapter Nine

Hey lovelies!! What's it been like six days?!

Jeez I'm sorry. 

Anyways here is Chapter....NINE!!

~Please excuse any and all mistakes~

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In the dictionary fear is described as an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat but, it's so much more than that. It's like a living thing eating away at your courage. It drains all the bravery out of your body and makes you want to run as fast as you can while screaming for your mommy. 

It makes your hands sweaty, your knees weak, your heartbeat accelerate, and it gives you the urge to throw up everything you've eaten within the last week. It holds you back in the times you need to move forward and laughs in your face when you can't overcome it. It's a plague, your worst enemy, and sometimes-just sometimes your greatest ally. 

Fear keeps you from doing stupid things and sometimes it stops you from doing great things. There are people who've learned to control it. I don't think anyone can ever really get rid of fear but, some handle it better than others. 

I felt my first taste of true, pants-wetting-mommy-screaming-fear, when I was five. My dad had taken me out surfing, which wasn't an odd occurrence back then, on my first ever Dawn Patrol. I was stoked. Imagine a little kid waking up on Christmas morning to find a puppy under the tree then times that by about 100 and that's how happy I was. 

I'd been begging him to take me for weeks and he'd finally caved. Well we'd gotten out there and it was time for my shining moment. I was totally going to shred the wave...only I didn't. I'd gotten a good start but, I messed up my footing and I wiped out. 

I was sucked under the wave and I couldn't get back up. As soon as I'd break surface another wave would crash onto my head and drag me back under. I couldn't breathe, I could't tell which way was up and which way was down, and I couldn't think. It felt like I had a giant weight pressing onto my chest making it so I couldn't breathe. I panicked. My mind could only focus on the terror I felt. On the fact that I thought I was going to die. 

Obviously I didn't. In a break between the waves my dad had been able to grab me and swim me back to shore. The fear in his eyes has never left me. Apparently he thought I'd been a goner too. 

Of course after the initial shock was over, I was ashamed. Then when I realized my board had been broken in half from the beating waves I was furious.I forgot all about the fear as my anger took over. My dad being slightly amused by my outburst tired to console me by buying me ice cream. I wasn't calmed down until he said I could help him build a new board. 

Despite the terror of that day I still consider it one the best days of my life because, I got to spend it with my dad. After we'd gotten ice cream I'd begged him to let me surf again. After a couple minutes of pleading and a barrage of puppy dog eyes, he caved. He rented a board from the board shack and took me out on the water. 

I shredded waves all the way till noon. I'd conquered the fear of being wiped out and went back to enjoying the surf. Never surfing again out of fear wasn't an option for me because, I loved it to much. The thought of quitting never even crossed my mind. 

Raegan has a fear of water. A true, pants-wetting-mommy-screaming, fear and I don't know how to help her get over it. She doesn't have the love of surfing to help her push through the terror of drowning. She doesn't have anything but, her own determination and the want to conquer her fear.