Friday, March 4, 2011

An Unexpected Loss

It's been a rough 24 hours. One of my parents nearest and dearest friends, the woman who introduced them, passed away from cancer. It was quick and sudden, but thankfully she was surrounded by the love and support of her family. Jill was a funny, caring, quirky and lovely person who like me, had one of the worst laughs in the world. When I was young, she used to tell me to listen to her because she was the reason I was around since she helped hook up my parents. A mother of two boys older than me, she also told me that I was the daughter she never had.

I haven't seen Jill in quite a few years. She lives in Victoria and me in Ottawa, but I have never stopped talking about her. People in Botswana know who Jill and her husband Jack are. I'm not kidding. People who know me, know I'm a talker so when I get going on something that I'm passionate about, it's hard to shut me up. Usually, I'm babbling about hockey, but sometimes, a select few loved ones are mentioned and Jill was one of those people.

A few hours after receiving news of Jill's passing, I received word that two people I knew drowned after their mokoro was overturned by a hippo in Maun. Apparently, three people made it to shore but the fourth person did not know how to swim and struggled to stay afloat. His friend returned to the water to save him but in a tragic twist of fate, they both drowned.

I am a strong swimmer. I always have been. Swimming has always been a part of my life. I don't even remember learning how to swim. I simply remember that swimming has always been a part of my life. It is not the case for most people in Botswana, or in Africa for that matter. In Botswana, which is landlocked, most people never have an opportunity to learn. There are rivers but they are riddled with crocodiles and hippos. And as such, there are many drownings in and around the Okavango district.

At my old house, a few friends and I began giving swimming lessons to local kids and teens from an orphanage. Many were scared to even touch the water with their toes during the first lesson, but eventually, most of them overcame their fear and began to enjoy the water. They jumped and splashed and it was hard to get them to listen to our lessons as all they wanted to do was play. The purpose of the lessons was twofold. We wanted to give these underprivileged kids the chance to cool off during the blistering summer days, but we also wanted to teach them about water safety and hopefully avoid more tragedies like the recent drownings.

We continually remind the kids that water is dangerous and that they have to be careful. We taught them to float and hold their breath. None of these kids can be called swimmers today, but hopefully with a bit of practice, they will have enough skills to make it to shore.

In memory of Jill, Omgee and Buddha. Live life to the fullest. Don't be afraid to take risks. And make the most of it.

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