Have you ever experienced your life being on the verge of death? I sure have. In fact, the incident happened not long ago, so I still can remember and feel the urgent situation I was in at that moment. Just like any other day of school, I was preparing to go class. It was Tuesday, the day in which I had swimming class. The class started at 3 p.m. so I usually ate lunch before going to class. On that day, I ate "soonduboojjigae," which was pretty spicy. The spiciness of the food prevented me from digesting the food well, and I never knew this physical state would bring a huge disaster in my life.
When I arrived at the swimming pool, the professor told the class that we would be doing a relay since it was the last class of the semester. The professor told us, "You will be graded in this relay." So, I thought to myself, "Let's try my best." We divided ourselves into two teams to start the competition. When we got ourselves all ready for the race, the professor shouted, "On your marks, get set, go!" Both teams cheered for their team waiting for their turn to receive the baton. I was lined up as the third swimmer in the relay, and when the second swimmer came and touched the wall, I immediately started swimming as fast as I could. I started racing through the water with all my strength, and let the fourth swimmer continue on the race. I was totally exhausted, and my legs felt like it was going to burst, because I pushed myself to the limit. Right when I was going to take a rest after the intense race, the professor chose the best swimmers and told them to start an all star race. Unfortunately, I was one of the all stars, so I had to swim again. Since it was a race, I could not let anyone down, so I tried my best to finish the race. I once again pushed myself to the threshold.
After finishing the relay, we all went back to the showers. With sore legs, I barely made myself through the showers. What was worse, I started to have trouble breathing. It was a feeling that I have never felt before. I felt very stuffy and something was exerting pressure in my chest. I sat down on a chair to relax myself and catch my breath. However, it did not get any better, and I could feel my face turn pale, and my body turn cold. I wanted to shout out, "Somebody help me, please!" At that moment, one of my classmates told me to go to the washroom and try to throw up what I had for lunch. I listened to his advice right away and tried to vomit. When I started vomiting, I felt extreme pain in my chest, but I believed it was the only way to get better. Miraculously, I felt blood go through my head again, and I started to feel better. If my classmate had not given me any advice, I would have almost died. From that day on, I learned an important lesson: never eat watery and spicy food before you swim. Moreover, never leave sick people by themselves.
Hi. First, I am happy that we live in the same world. When I read the first sentence, it seemed very intense though your style of writing is concise. I am not sure what made me absorbed in your writing was either the intensity of your experience or your excellent writing style. I really enjoyed reading. Also, I thought what if there had been no one to help? What if the only person who could help you hadn’t known first aid treatment? Just my idiotic imagination. But it is sure that you are so lucky! Thanks to you, I came to think that I should prepare for the urgent situation.
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ReplyDeleteHey Dohoon. I liked how you described the way your body felt in a very concrete manner, which helped me to sympathize your pain and understand your poor physical condition. Your writing style and the order was explained so well that there was no confusion in the entire writing. Keep up the good work!!
ReplyDeleteI’m Alive!
ReplyDeleteHave you ever experienced your life being on the verge of death? I sure have. In fact, the incident happened not long ago, so I still can remember and feel the urgent situation I was in at that moment. Just like any other day of school, I was preparing to go class. It was Tuesday, the day in which I had swimming class. The class started at 3 p.m. so I usually ate lunch before going to class. On that day, I ate “soonduboojjigae,” which was pretty spicy. The spiciness of the food prevented me from digesting the food well, and I never knew this physical state would bring a huge disaster on that day.
After having lunch at about 2 p.m., I got on the subway to go to Cheongnyangni station, where my swimming class took place. When I arrived at the swimming pool, the professor told the class that we would be doing a relay since it was the last class of the semester. The professor told us, “You will be graded in this relay.” So, I thought to myself, “Let’s try my best and have fun.” The classmates and I divided ourselves into two teams with equal swimming abilities to start the competition. When we got ourselves all ready for the race, the professor shouted, “On your marks, get set, go!” Both teams cheered for their team waiting for their turn to swim. I was lined up as the third swimmer in the relay, and when the second swimmer came toward me and touched the wall, I immediately started swimming as fast as I could. I started racing through the water with all my strength. I swam as if I was going to save someone who was drowning, and I could feel my heart beating fast. Not long, I reached the place where the fourth swimmer was waiting for me to touch the wall so that he could continue on the race. I was totally exhausted, and my legs felt like it was going to burst, because I pushed myself to the limit. Plus, I haven’t exercised in a long time, so I felt even more exhausted. “Team 1 wins!” the professor shouted, and my team all shouted out with joy. To bring this excitement to another level, the professor said, “Let’s start an all-star relay!” Right when I was going to take a rest after the intense race, the professor chose the best swimmers and told them to start an all-star race. Unfortunately, I was one of them, so I had to swim again. Since it was a race, I could not let anyone down, so I tried my best to finish the race. I once again pushed myself to the threshold.
After finishing the relay, we all went back to the showers. With sore legs, I barely made myself through the showers. Suddenly, I started to have trouble breathing a little. It was a feeling that I have never experienced before. I felt very stuffy and something was exerting pressure in my chest. I sat down on a chair to relax myself and catch my breath. However, it did not get any better, and I felt very dizzy and saw my face turned pale through a mirror that was hanging on the wall. I wanted to shout out, “Somebody help me, please!” but I did not have any strength to even speak. At that moment, one of my classmates told me to go to the washroom and try to throw up what I had for lunch. Right when he said “lunch” I realized that the food I had for lunch the reason for making my chest stuffy. I listened to his advice right away and tried to vomit. When I started vomiting, I felt extreme pain in my chest, but I had to keep doing it since I believed it was the only way to get better. Miraculously, I felt blood go through my head again, and my face started to go back to its color. I started to feel better and I cried to myself, “I’m alive!” If my classmate had not given me any advice, I would have almost died. From that day on, I learned an important lesson: never eat watery and spicy food before you swim. Moreover, never leave sick people by themselves.