Saving Honey

It was yesterday
We had all planned to go for dinner that evening
So my father came down in the afternoon
We had a few hours to kill until dinner
So he and I decided to take the dogs down to the lake for a swim
As it was quite a warm day
Nothing out of the ordinary there
We piled Honey and Lea in to the car
And off we went

We parked in the little car park
And set off for the forest walk leading down to the lake
I only ever put the dogs on their leads if we are walking on the road
As they are usually very good at staying close by

We walked through the woods
Me and my Dad chatting
And the dogs mooching around
We reached the lake
There were a good few people around
My Dad went to find a stick for Honey
And I brought Lea down to the lake
So she could go for a dip

A few minutes later Dad followed me with Honey and a handful of sticks
I began to throw them for Honey
She doesn't usually go in to the water
But if you throw a stick for her she will

This part of the  lake is almost enclosed
There is a pier jutting out
Then an opening out in to rest of the lake
I was throwing sticks and Honey and was swimming for them
And bringing them back
She loves this game
Then I threw the stick out particularly far
I didn't mean to
But the stick was light
It almost reached the other side
Honey started to swim out
I kept a close eye on her as it was quite a long swim to the stick

Then I noticed that the stick had sank in to the water
And Honey couldn't find it
She swam around in circles looking for it
And eventually she found something similar
A reed that was growing from the bottom of the lake
She grabbed the reed in her mouth
And tried to swim back over
But of course because the reed was growing
It wouldn't come with her
So Honey was left treading water

I thought she would realise that she couldn't bring the reed with her
But as stubborn as she is
She kept trying and trying
By this stage she looked like she was starting to struggle
But she still wouldn't give up trying to bring the reed back
A woman with children came over to me and said 'I think your dog is in trouble'
I was now starting to get worried
So I dropped the leads and began to sprint over to the other side of the lake
It must have taken me less than a minute
But it seemed to take forever
I was just hoping and praying that she would still be there by the time I got to her
I could hear my Dad and Lea coming behind me
I reached the other side of the lake
And Honey was still struggling
'Will I go in?' I shouted to my Dad
'Yes do' he shouted back
So I quickly took off my hoodie and shoes
And headed for the water in my jeans and t-shirt
I crawled down the rocks in to the water
I kept gasping as the cold water hit my body
But I kept going
I had to get to Honey
By now her head was beginning to go under
And yet she still wouldn't let go of the reed

I waded through the water
Then all of a sudden it got extremely deep
And I had to start to swim
It only took me seconds to reach her
I grabbed her either side
And thankfully she let go of the reed
I turned around
Kicking my legs in the breast stroke
And trying to keep Honey's head above the water
This was not easy
I reached the rocks again
And my Dad took Honey by the collar and pulled her up on to the grass
Phew, she was safe
I stretched out my hand and my Dad pulled me up to
All  the people around began to clap

I sat on the grass and tried to get my breath back
I couldn't quite believe what had just happened
I have been to this lake hundreds of times
And nothing like this had ever happened before
Honey was fine
She shook the water from her fur
And carried on as if nothing had happened

I squeezed out my soaking clothes and hair
Picked up my things
And began to walk back to the car
Thankfully we didn't meet too many people on the way
Although I did get a few odd glances
I lit a much needed cigarette

By this stage I was starting to feel cold
The water had been freezing
And I had no towel or anything in my car
We reached the car and set off for home
My mother was sitting in the back garden when we pulled in
When she saw me she started to laugh and said 'Oh my God, did you fall in?'
'Not exactly' I replied
And filled her in on what had happened
The thing is that I always knew that I would have to do that at some stage
I'm just glad it was Honey and not Lea
Lea weighs over 5 stone
And saving her from the water would be no easy feat

I went inside and peeled off all my wet clothes
And jumped in to a hot shower
The hot water felt so lovely after being in a cold and dirty lake
I put on some fresh clothes
And made myself a hot cup of sweet tea

I replayed the events over and over in my head
Something just took over when I saw Honey struggling
I didn't think about myself
All I knew was that I had to get her out of there
I imagine that is what a mother's instinct feels like
I wish I had some photos to show you
But it all happened so fast that there just wasn't time

So all was well at the end of the day
Honey took to her bed after her little adventure
And I spent the evening on the couch trying to get warm
There's never a dull moment when you have two dogs around..........

As if nothing had happened