FRENCH WORD-A-DAY

Hi Kristi: It was worth waiting for the second half of this cliffhanger.

What a wonderful story about what love really means. Thank you for sharing it with us.

I had a near drowning boat incident when I was 15. Almost got eaten by a shark at the same age while surfing. Far too many other near tragic incidences I NEVER told my mother about. She went to her grave blissfully ignorant of how many times she nearly lost me to fate. Your family must sure love you a lot to keep things from you, that's all I can say Kristin.

Thank you for sharing. You have become a friend since I was introduced to your page 3 years ago. I enjoy it all.

Dear Kristin,

God bless you and your beautiful family. His Light is shining on all of you. You have the sweetest and kindest heart.

I can only say how extremely blessed you are Kristi, all of you, that Jean-Marc was watching and acted so quickly to prevent a tragedy I cannot even think about. Such events encourages all of us to pay attention to dangers, but more than that, to the people we love and treasure in this life.

Dear Kristi,

I believe in angels, whether it be an unseen force or another person, especially a parent who will use every fiber in the body to protect a child. In this being kept from you, perhaps to protect you, you could not offer comfort during the trauma. But maybe what you offer now is more comforting and powerful as emotions from the others have settled and calmed somewhat. Such a beautifully expressed thought..."with the strength to lift every lead-heavy hurt off of your heart for the rest of eternity."

Thank goodness that Jean-Marc was there, and that you are there now to comfort and help emotions heal.

My mother used to say, "God works in wondrous ways."

Wonderful article. Thank you. As another commenter stated, in Hawaii and California, at least, the more common term in English is rip tide. The famous Makaha beach, where white person's surfing was invented, has a dramatic rip tide. The waves come in along the north side of the bay and then the water rushes out at quite a speed further south. Life guards are on constant watch for the many swimmers who get caught.

Hence the words>Enjoy each day/moment with your loved ones.. Don't let the sun go down with harsh words/action between you & your loved one. But mostly LIVE, LOVE, ENJOY EACH DAY AS IF YOUR LAST(With no intentional harm to others). Am VERY happy about the outcome. I too have been through similar situations with my self & my children>the outcome VERY good. Meaning lessons learned and the reason for thanking God for giving me/us life and the chance to do right by Him. Take care Kristin, God bless you and those you love. LOVE your family and enjoy them...

happy to hear jackie and JM are safe. how scary!! thank you for sharing.

Sometimes in life we need to find strength we don't feel. It is very true when it comes to our loved ones. A month ago my son borrowed my small roadster to go to school. The car is notorious for loosing traction and I have always warned my children to be careful when they drive it. My son called his father to tell him that the car slid off the road in a rainstorm and was stuck in the mud. My husband called me. I knew the place where this had happened, a tight curve with two lanes meeting up with an interstate and it has always been dicey even in good weather. I immediately called my son to tell him to get out of the car and move away from the fast moving traffic. Because of the traffic and the bad connection he could not hear me. If the car got hit with him in it he would be severely injured. Not could, but would be injured. The car is just too small (yes, I had been thinking of selling it for that reason). I was frantic that my son would stay in the car to be out of the rain. While waiting for a tow truck and for us, another car came along, lost control at the same place and slid into my Miata hitting the drivers side rear panel. My son was not injured because he had gotten out of the car in the pouring rain and moved up an embankment to be away from the traffic. When he called to tell us what had happened my only thought was, "Thank God, he was not in the car." I did not get upset, I was grateful my son was alive and well. I let my son describe to me the fear that made him move to a safer place and I talked to the other driver who expressed how relieved she was that my son had not been in the car when her much bigger car slid into the smaller one. Having the grace to listen to someone else can be difficult in difficult times. But it always pays off. Everyone is safe and moving on with life. There is so much I could talk about, the grace of God, the heroics of a father, the fear of drowning, but I will let others tell you how lucky all of you are, and just applaud you for listening, because there was a time when if I were in your situation, I would be lecturing everyone involved and prohibiting them from going to the water without my presence.

So glad for a good outcome! Blessings to you and your family.

What a terrifying and emotional story! I'm so relieved to read about the positive outcome! Like you, I am incredibly emotive, but this quality does also makes us strong, especially when it comes to our family.

Kirsit, What a terrifying experience for Jackie and for Jean-Marc. Your story was mesmerizing.

And you have a gift for telling a tale. You should write a novel.
barbara

This was a story like none other- terrifying for Jackie, Jean Marc and you as you look back. Your families' love for and wish to protect you also shines through so clearly.

A tender mercy to see the photo of Jackie with Smoky; to know that you are loved and
protected and the biggest of all graces: to know that your child is safe and that her father was willing to give his life to save her.

Beautifully written. Thank you, Kristi. Blessings on all.

Micki

That must have been so terrifying for both of them. I am thanking God they are both safe. Give Jackie and Jean Marc a big hug from me offering comfort.

xoxo

What a terrifying moment for them and for you later. I started to cry, imagining my own children in such a dangerous position. But your family must understand by now that even if you can be emotional (raising hand here) you have all the strength needed to battle every tribulation that comes your family's way.

And, Kristin, never second-guess yourself over whether you could have done something different to change an outcome. You know you give 100% to those you love, and that's all anyone can do.

That photo of Smokey and Jackie is stellar. I hope that's the moment Jackie remembers first when she thinks of your vacation. Blow it up, frame it, and put it in a significant spot in her bedroom.

How quickly you pull us in to a situation, get emotions and fears going, and, thankfully today, provide relief as well as a sweet photo. I hope you know what an expressive gift you have--so much complexity and subtlety in each short post. Today was masterful! The other gift is how much of yourself and your lovely family you share with your readers. Thank you!

Kristin, you are, indeed, emotional, sensitive, loving and in the end very strong. Thanks for the beautiful telling of this powerful tale of love.

Moved me to tears.
xoxo
Christine

Spread your arms like wings. When you throw your arms over your head, you're like a torpedo, and you sink. Stretch your arms out, perpendicular to your body to slow your descent if you're going down. If you can, fill your lungs with as much air as possible to increase buoyancy.

This story is amazing this is indeed strength of the human heart and bond shows us that life is precious and the bond of family, friends and living things around us should be treasured without reserve lots of love............

Hugs and love to you and your family. What a terrifying experience for your daughter and husband. I imaginee his heart pounded loud enough to be heard by Jackie. I am so relieved for the happy ending. What a lovely sweet picture of Jackie and Smokey at the end. Thank you for sharing.

Yikes! What a scary story. So glad all is well. JM was wise telling you in this manner. Thank you for bringing us along with you -- in happy, sad & scary times!

Stay well!

Kristin,
A tragedy waiting to happen but all turned out well. Thank God. Dean's children did many things that they never told their parents,such as floating on the ice floats in Long Island Sound and and falling the freezing water. They always, some how survived. Some children just have that, je ne sais quoi.

Kathleen

Love your 'short response,' Kristin.

Yes, I don't like when people keep things from each other either. In my humble opinion, I see it as thinking that person is not strong enough to handle the news and removing their opportunity to become stronger.

However, I did not tell my mother everything I did when growing up either. Touché

So happy to hear it turned out well - I almost drowned when I was a small child. The fear of the power of the ocean has never left me.

Glad she is fine!

K

In their shock after such an immense scare, it was natural for them to seek to protect you, and by good fortune this decision made it possible for you to be their loving groundwire when the time came for them to process what had happened. Kristi, their initial focus on You helped everyone -- in a natural, powerful way vibrant with love -- to begin to absorb a life-changing experience in ways that enrich you all. Thanks be.

Kristie
I felt a shudder all up my spine when reading this. How frightened Jackie and Jean Marc must have been. Mother Nature is indeed powerful and we must respect her!
Best
penny

So, so glad they are fine!

aaaaaaaahhhhhhhh, thank You, Lord.
xoxo

Je suis content que l'histoire finit si heureusement. Maintenant, elle a deux raisons d'être reconnaissant envers son père pour sa vie. Un lien puissant est créé quand quelqu'un est sauvé de la mer.

Our dear Kristi,
You brought tears to my eyes today.
We rejoice for you and with you that our beautiful Jackie is well.
What a deeply loving bond you and your precious family share.
You have given us renewed inspiration to cherish every day together.
THANK YOU!
Love
Natalia. xo

I couldn't wait to learn the secret but I never imagined anything like this. My eyes swelled with tears as I read your very moving account of what happened. Kristin, I have been enjoying your blog for 6 years and I think this is your best piece of writing. I could feel Jean-Marc's angst jumping right off the page. The way you told the story from the different points of view is brilliant. To end with such a touching picture was perfect. Thank God that your beautiful daughter is alright.

Kristi, I am just reading this now and am speechless. So many others here have beautifully expressed the gamut of emotions that I felt in reading this. I will just add that I am so incredibly grateful for the outcome. Much Love to you and yours.
PS. I knew that photo with Smokey was special when I saw it on ig and now...well, it is so much more so...

Hi Kristi,
Once again, your story brings tears to my eyes! I'm so happy to hear Jackie is okay, what a scary experience! Thank God she had her boogie board. I think that is a French things to tell Maman after the fact because my husbands family does the same thing. I LOVE the picture of Smokey and Jackie, that needs to be blown up on Canvas. Thank you for sharing your life with us Kristi.

Bisous,
Sandy

Thank You all for your sweet and conforting words.
My reaction to this highly fearing situation has been just natural, no braveness at all involved here.
Hope this will serve as a lesson for future similar situations.
Happy end of Summer

Getting caught in a rip happens all too often here in Oz, and I am so relieved that Jackie and 'Chief Grape' are safe. Bless you Kristi, many hugs sent your way; your story and photo brought tears to my eyes and gratitude to my heart. Love, Lisa xx

Dear Kristi,
What a moving experience for all. It's hard to be the mother because we tend to say "don't tell Mom" whenever there is bad news. JM was wise to wait before telling you so that you could see Jackie restored safe and sound. Losing Breizh has taken time to work through and I think it was so much better to wait until he could tell you of a good news ending. We who live near the ocean are drilled often about swimming horizontally to shore in case of a riptide, but I've often wondered how well I would hold up in terms of swimming for a very long time. Praise God for body boards! Also important to look out for pools close to shore in front of sandbars as they aren't always that shallow. So happy for a great ending and that Papa was there to help.

When I was 12 and my brother 10, we were both good swimmers, the only children in a skin-diving club. One afternoon we were swimming, and didn't realize until later that we were getting far from shore. When we tried to return, we found it difficult going. My father said later it was a riptide. I didn't panic, but was unable to help my brother because we were close to the same size and I couldn't carry or pull him and still swim. I eventually made it to shore, and a lifeguard brought my brother back. I remember thinking while in the water, "We could drown," which seemed strange, although we were not actually drowning; I was aware that at some point we would be too tired to resist the waves.
After this incident, I learned that one should swim at an angle to the shore (say 45 degrees). I see in your account that you say people should swim parallel. Maybe both methods work. In any case, one should not swim straight in. I don't get to the ocean often, but when I do, I generally stay in water not deeper than my own height, to be on the safe side.