I got into some sticky situations at New Smyrna Beach in Florida where I grew up. As a teenager, I stayed up all night at a friend’s condo to meet boys (who never showed up.) I forgot to wear sunscreen a full day at the beach and my face turned into one big blister (I’m not joking). Who knew that the most painful place to get a sunburn was the back of the knees? I often swam solo far from shore. Those days ended after I saw the movie “Jaws.” I heard about having a swim buddy and this time I just happened to have one. After boogie boarding and body surfing, I was with one of my best friends, Andrea. We had one boogie board between us and Andrea was floating on the boogie board and I swam alongside. As we talked, we hadn’t noticed how quickly we had floated from shore. The main problem was something called an “undertow” which is “A current below the surface of the sea moving in the opposite direction to the surface current, esp. away from the shore.”
My main experience with undertow’s had been feeling a strong undercurrent pulling me under the water toward the bottom of the ocean. Some undertow’s were stronger than others. That day, after being pulled out far to sea, I felt my strongest undertow pull me under. I kicked and struggled to not be pulled under the ocean. It took all my strength to try to rise. I reached up my arm and my fingertips touched the air. I couldn’t even pull my head above the water. But Andrea didn’t reach me. I descended again and this time, I knew I would die. I felt very peaceful with this realization. I started to descend again with my arm still held up, a goodbye to this world. Then I felt Andrea grasp my arm and pull me up to safety. Since we were far from shore and there was still a strong undertow pulling us farther out to sea, we swam with all our might while floating on the boogie board. It took us an hour to get back to shore. My friend was my lifeline that day. Andrea said "I remember that day so well! All I know is prayers are answered because I screamed for Heavenly Father to help us- and He did!"
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Another life or death situation in my life came, now with bipolar disorder, when I wanted to end my life. Close friends and family were lifelines as they were strong enough to ask tough questions. Another time for a lifeline came when I suffered with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and felt completely alone and misunderstood. A lady I didn’t know from my church left a note at my door. One line of the note read: “I know you are struggling, and although I cannot fully understand your trials, I want you to know that I love you.” Just knowing that a stranger loved me and cared enough to write a note deeply touched me. This was the beginning of healing for me in some aspects of my PTSD.
The song, “Lifeline” by Anthem Lights coins how I felt long ago. “The water was getting higher and higher. My arms kept getting more and more tired. And the harder I would try, the further I would dive down. So I gave up and I finally let go. Stop trying to save myself and be my own hero. And when I opened my eyes, that’s when I realized… you were there the whole time. I’ve got a lifetime waiting for me, ready to save.” It usually takes inspiration to notice if someone is figuratively drowning in his or her life. It can be simple or profound, for a stranger or a friend, but you can make a difference in someone else’s life. Be a lifeline today.
