shallow not deep water
ocean the sea
waded walked slowly into the water
completely all
gentleness softness
gaze to look
vista view, what she could see
nonchalantly quietly, not caring, not hurried
reluctant not wanting to do something
She slowly walked down to the waters edge. The lake was large but shallow. She stood at the edge of the water for some minutes, looking around, smelling the smell that lakes give off, different to the salty air of the ocean. Mind you, she hadn’t been to the ocean, that was thousands of miles away, but she knew in her family history that it was there somewhere, far far away. She could see him in the distance, he was coming along to the lake too. The cool water around her feet was refreshing, it was late afternoon, and it had been such a hot day. A cooling swim now would be wonderful. She slowly waded into the deeper water, feeling its coolness against her skin. So refreshing. She lay down getting completely wet, putting her head under the water too, relaxing, cooling, feeling the gentleness of the water. She stayed there until the sun set.
He took his time coming to the lake edge, not hurried, it was a hot day, but there was no stress, no rush, nothing to hurry for. His gaze took in the whole vista, the large shallow lake surrounded by trees, grass, muddy patches, sandy beaches here and there, and he saw her swimming lazily in the lake. He had followed her down deliberately. There had definitely been an attraction as he saw her earlier in the day. He had kept his distance, but not too far. He knew that she knew he was there. He knew that she knew what he wanted. He knew that she would not reject him. So far the signs had been all favorable. He slowly entered the water, swimming around nonchalantly as if he didn’t know she was there. Gradually he got closer, made eye contact. He swam right up to her. No words were spoken. He touched her, and she allowed it. His happiness was evident, and she allowed it. In the warm shallow water of the lake he took her, and she allowed it.
Several years later she was back. She stood, as before at the lake edge. Much of the water had gone now, but there was enough to swim and play in. She slowly waded into the shallows, encouraging her son to follow. He was reluctant, it was cold on his youthful feet, but once the first chill had passed he too walked into the water. He followed his mother, as she kept a loving eye on this growing son, getting stronger day by day. This was his first swim, so she wanted to make sure he stayed safe. She looked back along the path, and trumpeted loudly. “Come and see your beautiful son take his first swim.”
Questions for review.
1. What is this story about?
2. Where does this happen in a lake or the sea? How do you know?
3. What are the names of the characters in this story?
4. Explain how a swim cools you down.
5. How old is her son?
6. Look for the word in bold at the end of the story. What does this word mean?
7. Are there any animals that make a trumpeting noise? If so which one?
8. Is this story about humans?
9. What animal is this story about.
