The conflicting Rhein River...

It’s the little things that bring great joy.  The Rhein River for example….if you look at a map – it actually flows south to north.  Starts in the Swiss Alps and makes its way to the North Sea in Rotterdam (766 miles total or 1232 km). The Rhein River is spelled differently depending on the country it flows through. It is spelled Rhein in Germany; Rhine in France and Rijn in Netherlands…and who knows the correct pronunciations; probably all different as well!  I happen to come into contact with this river in Schaffhausen, Germany…or rather a little village close by called Busingen.

This past week when I was in Busingen for some more finance training; it was HOT.  Now – if you know me at all – I don’t do hot.  So when it was suggested that the thing to do in the summer was to float the Rhein River; I was all in!  Did I have a swimsuit? – nope but shorts/t-shirt will have to doJ.  Did I have a floating device?– nope, the current carries you pretty well especially if you are out towards the middle of the river.  Did I have my Keens along to wear in the water since I don’t like ‘gunk’? – nope but the river is amazingly clean and clear so I wore my Toms insteadJ.  (I really don’t like gunk of any sort; even if it is just when you get outJ.)

We worked all day long – accomplished a lot (actually we did…was my favorite day…I think I get more of the big picture which is HUGE to me!).  And off to float the river for just a short period…enough to cool off, experience the Rhein and enjoy the company of four other people also in Busingen.  It was wonderful - the current really did carry us along quite well, water was clear so you could see the bottom,  it was a beautiful setting and I enjoyed it very much.  Then it got a bit more exciting…I FREAKED out.  I don’t know what happened but boy did I feel pretty dumb.  The guy with us that lives there was telling us where we would be getting out etc and so we all started making our way over to the side but for some reason I just didn’t think I was going to make it and started in panic mode swimming to the side and in the mean time I couldn’t breathe!  One of the ladies with our group is trained in water safety etc and she came over to help me.  She realized I was hyperventilating and got me all calmed down.  It was WEIRD…I just could not breathe.  Several years back I was scuba certified and the same thing happened on my first dive – I hyperventilated.  It was the toughest thing I’ve done to get certified but I am and I enjoy diving when I have the chance in warm waterJ.    So I’ve hyperventilated below the surface with an air tank on but never above surface. 

Anyway – long story and all is well but I must tell you – it was scary to me for a bit there.  Very thankful for AnneMarie being there to make sure I was ok!  I was oh so happy to make it out of the water, back to the guesthouse and into the shower to relax and BREATHE.  Just writing this today – my breathing is faster…weird right?!  So now I’m the proud (?) American that can say I have not only floated the beautiful Rhein River in Germany but also hyperventilated in the Rhein River!  Life is good – I do appreciate stil being here – and I truly believe God is waaaayyy better.  He’s got my backJ.



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Comments

  1. Terri CoronaJuly 24, 2015 at 11:44 AM

    Wow - an even more memorable experience than it would have been otherwise! Glad you're okay, and can now say you've done it!

    ReplyDelete

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