Journal+6

In my younger years I was very gullible. My father was and is quite the comedian. He thought it was funny to mess with my fragile, budding child mind. In my adolescent confusion he would tell me all about how when the sun sets it lands in Africa, and they cover it with a giant blanket to turn off the light. It made sense to me because it would explain the temperature in Africa and it showed why it was dark at night. One of the most traumatic experiences of my life started because of one of his little stories. You see, one day I went for a swim in a public pool. As I emerged from the water I was rubbing my eyes. They burned like I had just been sprayed with vinegar. I was curious as to why they burned. My dad told me that it was from the chlorine… wait for it… and the chlorine was to keep the octopi from growing in the pool. I was instantly terrified of the pool. Every time I entered a pool I would ask my mom if there was a lot of chlorine in the pool because I wanted to be sure there wasn’t an octopus in the depths of the pool. My mom didn’t know why I was asking this. When I was at my aunt’s house I was swimming when I asked my mother about the chlorine. With the pool being a private pool there was considerably less of the chemical. She explained this to me and I was instantly paralyzed with fear. There must have been octopi in the pool! As I frantically swam to the edge of the pool for safety one of the spineless creatures wrapped its tentacles around my leg. I thrashed around and finally got free. When I got to the surface I peered down at my attacker-a pool cleaner. It had caught me with its tube floating in the liquid. And that is why you should never listen to your father.