The Shark in the Water

It was a beautiful sunny day as Theo splashed in the water. His mother Sally watched from the shore to make sure that he remained safe. A sailboat went by, and Theo waved to it. The four-year-old loved the water.

“Look Mommy,” said Theo holding up a fish. “I caught one.”

“Wow,” said Sally. “That’s amazing without a fishing pole.”

“I used my magical powers,” answered Theo.

“Good job,” said Sally. “I’m very proud of you.”

“You cannot cook my fish for supper,” said Theo. “I’m going to let it swim and play in the ocean.”

“Alright,” said Sally. It was part of their routine that Theo would catch at least one fish each time they played in the water, and then he would release it. Looking at the fish, she was quite sure that Theo caught the same ones over and over again.

Sally and Theo heard a knocking sound. “Time for the seagoers to come for supper,” said a voice off in the distance.

“I’m not hungry yet,” said Theo. “I need to scare this shark out of the water. Can you see him, Mommy? He’s scary.”

“Oh, my, yes,” said Sally. “I can see him. Watch your toes, the shark will want them for his supper.”

“I’ll catch him some fish,” said Theo. “I don’t want the shark to be hungry.”

“No, Theo,” said Sally. “You need to get out of the water and away from the shark. I know you want to make friends with everything. And, while the shark has every right to live in the ocean, you cannot stay in there with him”

“But you let me be in the water when the fish are here,” said Theo.

“Fish are different,” said Sally. “Sharks have shark teach and they eat anything that gets in their way.”

“My friend Ronnie went swimming with the dolphins,” said Theo. “They’re almost as big as a shark.”

“Swimming with dolphins isn’t the same as being in the ocean with a shark,” said Sally.

“Uh oh,” said Theo. “The shark is getting closer.”

“Hurry, Theo,” said Sally, “out of the water. I’ll get you dried off and away from the beach. You just have to come to me.”

“Come in and get me,” said Theo laughing.

“There’s no room for me to join you,” said Sally.

“But the ocean is huge,” said Theo.

“This is a different ocean,” said Sally. “Not the same kind as when we actually go to the beach.”

“But this is our beach,” said Theo, “and I get to come here every day.”

There was another knock. This time it was louder. “Time’s up,” called the voice. “Supper is going to get cold.”

“Now, we really need you to get out of the water and get dressed for supper,” said Sally. “You heard Daddy.”

“Do you think he made us a shark burger?” asked Theo.

“Come on out of the water and we’ll ask him,” said Sally.

Theo screamed, “Shark get away.” Then, he jumped out of the large bubbly expanse sending water everywhere. Sally laughed even though she knew cleaning up would take a while.

Once Theo had been dried off and dressed, Sally sent him downstairs while she pulled the plug from the bathtub and began to clean up the large number of bath toys including a rubber fish and a spongy shark.

Each bath time meant that there was a different adventure and Sally, and Theo could go along with his imaginative stories. There was never a dull moment and despite the cleanup, Sally was glad that her son was so creative. His wild imagination was incredible, and it always made her smile.