Story 99: I'm all bogged down

    

      I've enjoyed exploring many of Long Island's beautiful rivers.  One in particular the Nissequogue, is my favorite. I Iike it because you can tour the river from a small rivulet to a large expanse of water, or depending on the tides do the reverse.

   One summer I canoed the Nissequogue with my friends Michael and David.  We had a great time, but after having lunch at a nearby Island, Michael and I felt the need to use the bathroom, and without thinking about possible consequences got out of the canoe to remedy the situation. Unfortunately for us, we soon discovered that our feet were stuck in unyielding mud.  Mud that was as hard as quicksand. I literally could not get my feet out, and started to panic.

I pulled my right leg with all my strength and ended up breaking one of my sandals in the process, and then got into the canoe with great relief.  Michael was a bit more level headed and untied his sandals. He returned to the boat with both intact.  For several minutes though it was definitely a very “sticky situation.”

Life Lesson 99: Rudyard Kipling once said that if you keep your head while others are losing theirs that you can cope with most problems that are thrown at you.  You may even avoid losing other things like your life, or sometimes something as simple as your shoe.