Page 39 of Below the Far Horizon
“I don’t think we need to worry about that too much. As long as we stay in Blackberry Bay, we’ll be able to get out of the water easily. Even if something comes up suddenly, the water here doesn’t get nearly as choppy as it does out on the lake.” Trevor sounded confident, as well he should, if he was out kayaking as much as Don said they were.
“If you want to get in, you can, and I’ll push the kayak out in the water so you don’t have to get wet,” Trevor offered as he set their kayak down in the water.
Don was doing the same for Gita, and Grace said, “Can you hold on one second. Please?”
He nodded, and she hurried over to offer a hand to her mother to help steady her.
“I know you’re almost as good as new, but it’ll make me feel a little better if I give you a hand till you get in the boat.”
“I’m glad you did. I’ve been doing my exercises religiously, way more than what they asked me to, but I still don’t feel like I have my balance completely back.”
“That’s what your therapist said was important,” Grace said, and Gita nodded, like that’s exactly what she had been thinking about.
Grace held a hand out, and her mom placed hers in it. She put first one foot and then the other into the boat.
“I’m holding it as steady as I can,” Don said as the boat rocked just a little, and Grace moved another hand to help her mom steady herself.
Finally, her mom was settled in the boat. Grace thought about offering to help Don but figured he would be insulted.
Instead, she went back to her own boat.
“Thanks. I know she probably would have been fine, but…” She shrugged a little.
“I like seeing you take care of your mom. It makes me happy in some elemental way. I know that’s weird.”
“I don’t think that’s weird. It makes me happy to see you taking care of your dad. It’s what kids are supposed to do.”
“It’s weird when that kind of flip-flops, you know? Where you realize that your parents need you, and it’s not just you doing something good, it’s you doing something necessary.”
“Yeah. I’ve been seeing that more and more. It’s hard for me to imagine my mom not being the strong, capable woman that she’s always been, but you’re right. There comes a time when that shift happens, and that’s what we get.”
“I don’t necessarily think that’s a bad thing. It teaches kids to think about what their parents did for them and to be grateful. It also teaches you to think beyond yourself. A lot of times with our parents, we’re always thinking about what they can do for us, and it’s good for us to start thinking about what we can do for them.”
“Yeah. I suppose that does grow you, along with a lot of other things,” she said, thinking about the discussion that they’d had before where they talked about trials making them better people.
“I’m really looking forward to this today,” he said as he held out a hand to help her into the kayak.
She glanced at it, trying not to take too long but remembering when it used to be her right to hold that hand. When that hand had comforted her and sat gently on her back or on her thigh. When they walked down the street casually clasping hands and laughing together.
There were so many memories bound up in that hand.
She knew she hesitated a second or two too long, but she put her hand in his without further comment.
He helped her in the boat, and he didn’t say anything either.
Kayaking was something they hadn’t done when they were together, although she wasn’t sure why. It was a fun activity that they both enjoyed.
“I’m in,” she said as she settled down on her seat. She wished there was something she could do to help him and put her oar in the water, figuring that she could at least try to ballast the boat as he moved it into the deeper water, so when he set it down, the underside didn’t scrape on the bottom.
“I’m fine. Brace yourself, because it might wobble a bit when I get in.”
She noted that Don had gotten in without any major issues, meaning that her mother was still dry, as was he.
The physical therapist had told them that swimming would not hurt her, but she should continue to make a concerted effort to not fall down.
The kayak shook as Trevor got in behind her, and she did what she could to keep it steady, although she wasn’t sure whether she was actually helping anything or not. Despite growing up by the lake, she wasn’t that great at being on the water.
A tendril of nervousness, coupled with fear, tightened in the pit of her stomach, and she remembered why she didn’t kayak despite being so close to the lake.
