“Okay, guys, we’re going to play a game now, ” David, one of the kayaking instructors said.

“Thank gosh!” I thought. My arms were screaming for relief. Quickly, David explained the game to us. Apparently, the object of the game was to switch kayaks with another person. Seems easy enough, I thought to myself. I thought this for the next five seconds until David told us how we had to switch kayaks.

“I know what you’re thinking, this should be easy, ” David said reading my mind, “I admit, it does sound easy. However, you have to switch kayaks by running across the top your teammate’s boats. Now, who wants to go first?” At this, almost all the guy’s hands raised along with some of the girl’s, including mine. David scoped out the hands sticking out in the air and picked four people’s hands.

“We’re going to make this a big difficult as you seem to be professionals, ” David said maliciously, “We’re going to have four people switch boats at the same time. You and you, ” He said while he pointed to Hunter and Julian. “And you and you, ” He said pointing to Chris and Katherine. Julian and Hunter stood up first and everyone clung desperately to their neighbor’s kayaks as Hunter and Julian began dashing across the front of the kayaks.

After Julian and Katherine were settled into their kayaks, Katherine and Chris stood up for the challenge. Chris and Katherine ran across the kayaks in record speed, until they met in the middle. At this point, they just stopped and stared at each other. Suddenly, the forceful waves they created boomeranged back and began rocking the boats. Katherine fell back onto Joey’s kayak and Chris fell onto mine.

“Move! You’re on my leg!” I screamed, my leg being crushed under Chris’s weight. Chris jumped at the sound of my voice and fell backwards onto Blake’s kayak. Blake and Chris wildly bobbed up and down, Chris desperately clinging onto Blake’s kayak. Katherine was doing the same to Joey’s boat while Joey cursed up a storm of fifty pushups.

Slowly, Katherine and Chris both stood up, then the mayhem began. “Katherine!’ I screeched. I could see the water rising in Joey’s boat. Not knowing what to do, Katherine clambered on to my kayak and Chris fell back onto Blake’s kayak, again.

Suddenly, water flooded my kayak. “Katherine! You’re sinking my boat! You’re going to sink it!” Panic flooded my mind like the water was doing to my kayak. Slowly, but surely, the water level continued to rise. Chris didn’t help this situation either by also dashing across my boat. “Really Chris?!” I thought, “I’m already sinking and you’re going to climb onto my boat. That’s smart.”

“Get out!” Mr. Muir yelled to me. “Get out!” I knew I had to get out, but I had to find my water bottle first. I plunged my hand into the cold water and began to blindly search for my water bottle. The water level slowly rose from my waist, to my torso, until it reached my chest. I knew I had to get out, but I couldn’t find my water bottle! Thinking that I had lost my water bottle I sprang from my kayak as it continued to sink.

I quickly swam over to Joey’s boat and clung to the rope that was around the front of his kayak.

“I’m not done yet!” Chris yelled defiantly. Then, Chris being Chris, launched himself away from my kayak and into Joey’s in a hopeless attempt to save himself.

“AAAAAHHHHH!” Joey cried and Chris violently rocked his boat.

“Chris! What are you doing?” I shrieked at him. Again and again–even though he was already wet from rain and the water–Chris tried to get into Joey kayak. The weight, plus the constant rocking of Chris made Joey’s kayak capsize, spitting Joey into the water.

Joey, Chris, Katherine and I splashed around, clinging onto our friend’s kayaks. “Chris! Katherine!” I yelled.

“What?” Chris asked sheepishly.

“Um…” Katherine said hesitantly. I simply glared them both down. When I looked down, I realized Blake held my water bottle in his hands.

“You saved my water bottle!” I said, amazement and joy welling inside of me.

“Um, yeah. I grabbed it when it was sinking.” Blake replied, oblivious to my gratitude.

“Thank you!” I cried, almost knocking him into the water as I tried to hug him. To me, this was no ordinary water bottle. This was from my Leadership Trip to Yunnan. I carried this water bottle through sleet, snow, rain and hail. This water bottle was my story.

Somehow, the kayaking instructors righted Joey’s boat and recovered my kayak from the water. During the entire fiasco, Katherine saved my paddle from drowning. And when she went to climb into her kayak, she thrust my paddle into Blake’s hands.

“Emersyn. Emersyn. Emersyn!” Mr. Muir called with my kayak safely floating on the water. I quickly swam to him, not realizing my paddle was with Blake. I oh-so-gracefully climbed into my kayak, then I realized my mistake.

“Blake!” I called.

“Yeah?” He said, turning around.

“You have something important of mine.” I said to him.

“Your water bottle or your paddle?” He said jokingly, knowing I meant my paddle.

“Well, they’re both important, but I was talking about my paddle.” I said back to him. Using my arms as paddles, I splashed my way over to Blake where I reclaimed my water bottle and my paddle.

“Thanks, ” I said to Blake, not realizing he was already off kayaking. “Well, I guess I don’t need a shower, ” I murmured to myself, the wind bouncing off the water, just enough to chill my soaking self.