Every once in a while we all listen in on a conversation that just grabs our attention and leaves us with food for thought. Recently I overheard a discussion that did just that. Before I begin, ponder if you had grown up with bibliophobia – the fear of reading – then suddenly challenge yourself to read a book a week in order to conquer your fear. You go to the library, and it is closed. In fact, your society has chosen to condemn literacy and burn the books!

Back to the conversation. It was among a group of women discussing what appeared to be a difficult situation – mother attempting to end a marriage and protect her children. She described to the others a moment when, as a young girl, she had gone to a community outdoor swimming pool with friends. They had a high platform diving pad that was the big challenge for kids to jump or adults to dive from the platform – a true test of courage,

The woman said she clearly remembered as a child climbing the staircase to the tower, curling her toes over the edge of the platform … and then backing away and descending the ladder to the ground. It caught my attention because I had done exactly the same thing in the 1950’s at the Olympic outdoor pool  in North York. The one metre and three metre springboards were no problem – my Dad had been a champion high school swim team diver in Windsor, and had taught me well.

But the concrete unforgiving edge of the five metre diving platform was a challenge I backed away from several times. The day I summoned the courage to take the jump, my Dad was watching from the pool deck. From his cheers and warm hug after, you’d think I had just done a swan dive off the cliffs of Acapulco. But what if, on the day I had made the decision to jump, that had emptied the pool?

Back to the present day discussion I overheard. The woman in question sounded like she had laboured long and hard about the decision to leave her partner – she sounded concerned about his reaction, concerned about her children’s safety. Having finally made the decision, she got blindsided by legal small print. She had been to lawyers several times to fill out the appropriate papers, had met her deadlines, and then was told her day to serve papers had been delayed, There was another form needed, and then another. And then the lawyers went on vacation.

And there she was, standing on the edge of the diving platform, finally confident In herself to take the jump … and they had emptied the pool.

Read the books before they burn the libraries, take the plunge before they empty the pool, and when it’s time to get out of Dodge, pack your bags and go and don’t look back. A cautionary tale, the way I see it.

Skid Crease, Caledon