Theme Park - Kai

I was four when it happened. Both my parents had taken off from work that day to accompany me on a field trip to Sesame Place. Being a child from the city, I appreciated the few moments I was able to escape from my city environment, even if that time was very limited. The trip was organized by my preschool teacher, Mrs. Sheldon. I don’t remember much about her, other than she was supposedly very strict, according to my mother, but my mother said that of every teacher I had until high school. Probably to intimidate me into doing well in school. Many of my teachers were not as severe as she made them out to be, and I found that to be the case with Mrs. Sheldon.

Seeing characters from the show in real life was a startling and surreal experience for me. But I was less concerned about them and more wrapped up in the rides and attractions at the park, which were the main selling point for me. I could see these characters on my television screen every morning at eight, but how often would I get to be king of Cookie Mountain, or jab my way through the monster maze, or ride down the silly sand slide twice. Those dry attractions (rides that were not in water) were already highlights of the trip, and we hadn’t even made it to the water park.

The rambling river was a popular attraction at the park, and still is to this day. During the ride, you floated in an inner tube, through Sesame Island- past bubbling waters, geysers, and waterfalls. This, I imagine, was exciting to the average four year old, and endurable for the parents or guardians who accompanied them. All you had to do was stay on the tube, let the currents push you, and it was smooth sailing. It should have been the high point of the trip, but instead, ended up a disaster. I don’t know if the currents were too strong that day or if I was still sorting through my fear of water, particularly, large bodies of water, but something came over me. It forced me to lose my balance and fall off my float. I can’t recall the depth of the water. It couldn’t have been deep, but it probably seemed so at the time. I don’t remember the details but I remember plenty of flailing about, and shouting. I recall my father going in after me and losing his glasses in the process. I remember my mother looking down below through her fingers; watching the spectacle unfolding. I’m not sure if she was actually looking through her fingers, as I was too busy flailing about, but that’s how I imagined her. That’s what I had seen on television shows and in movies. When I reached dry land, the fear I felt minutes ago was gone and replaced with embarrassment and shame. It was the first time I recall wanting to crawl under a rock. I don’t think I knew what that statement was at the time, but I could feel it‘s meaning intensely in that moment.