Castles In The Sand
Castles In The Sand
Copyright © 2018 by Mark Toney.
All rights reserved.
Dedication
To my darling wife, Carol, who has put up with my building castles in the sand and tilting at windmills for over 45 years.
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CASTLES IN THE SAND
Picture a beautiful beach with lots of white sand and the water almost calm with gentle waves lapping the shore, as it reflects the brightness of the early morning sun coming up just over the horizon.
Can you feel the wonderful breeze?
Can you smell the salt as you breath in the ocean air?
Can you see and hear the seagulls flying unconcerned all around you?
You see a man enjoying a stroll on the beach, something he does every morning.
But listen. The soothing sounds of the wind, water and seagulls are suddenly intruded upon by the sad cries of a small child. The man notices a small girl sitting by a pile of sand.
"What's wrong?" the man asks very kindly as he kneels by the little girl.
"Someone wrecked my sand-castle," the little girl replies, tears flowing from her eyes.
"Don't worry little one, I'll help you build another," and to the little girl's delight, the man begins to clear away the area in preparation for a new sandcastle.
As he begins forming the sand, the man's concentration is broken by frantic cries for help. Looking out over the water, the man notices the tiny figure of a person, desperately hanging on to one of the buoys marking the outer boundary of the swimming area.
Running to the edge of the water, he clearly notices that this is another little girl, close in age to the first. Her swimming has carried her too far, into deeper water, and now she perilously clings to the buoy, unable to swim back to shore.
The man returns to the first girl and continues to build the sandcastle.
"The girl in the water is safe for now", he assures himself.
"As long as I can hear her cries for help, I know her head is above water. Besides, this other little girl's problem came first."
"As soon as I am done with the sandcastle, I will rescue the other one..."
And so, the man does build the sandcastle, one more magnificent than the first. And all the while he builds it, he continues to hear the cries from the second little girl. By the time he's finished the sandcastle, her cries have become weaker and less frequent.
"Are you happy now?" he asks the first little girl, as she joyfully dances around her sandcastle.
"Oh yes," she cries, "thank you sir...."
With that the man races toward the water to save the other little girl. As he dives into the water, he notices that she's no longer clinging to the buoy, and her head is partially under water. Arms stroking and legs kicking the water with all the strength he can muster, he reaches her in record time, but not before her head has gone completely under the water. He expertly positions her on her back so that her face now stays above the water, and wasting no time, he makes his way back to shore.
By now it is close to mid-day, and a group of people have gathered around to witness the unfolding drama. The rescue squad arrives just as the man begins administering CPR to the little girl's lifeless body. Suddenly, there's a cough, water clears her lungs; the little girl starts showing signs of life. The rescue team takes over, getting her to the hospital in time to save her.
The parents are extremely grateful to the man for his rescuing their little girl, and the city honors him with a citation for bravery.
Do you feel this man is deserving of such honor?
If you were the little girl's parents and knew the whole story, how would you react?
Especially when you discover that this man was the lifeguard assigned to that beach!
What about us? Are we making sure of the more important things, or are we busy building castles in the sand?
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