Normal Day at The Beach

I don’t remember many details about the day leading up to the incident at the beach and the moments after the event are also slightly foggy.  I will forever remember every detail of the occurrence that has left me changed forever.

It was the summer of 1982 and I was a fun-loving boy of ten years old on vacation with my parents and my younger brother who was seven.  Summer trips were normal for my family and I, and that year was no exception.  We were living in Georgia for approximately 4 years at that point having relocated from NY.  We had never been to Savannah before and that was the lucky destination spot for the Hughes family.

My mother was still working as an Elementary school teacher, so naturally a place that’s rich in history such as Savannah, required us to take some tours.  While the city is beautiful and as I’ve gotten older, I have grown to better appreciate those tours, at the time I thought it was boring.  My brother and I have been swimming since we were very young and enjoyed the water, so we were looking forward to our day at the beach and couldn’t wait for tour time to be over.  We went to bed hoping to wake up to an excellent day of sunshine.  We did!

It started off as a typical morning with going out for breakfast.  I don’t remember where we went or what I had to eat, all I longed for was the water.  We discovered on our way to the Atlantic that there was a possibility of showers later in the day.  As we got out of the car I recall looking at the beautiful blue skies with just a touch of fluffy white clouds.  I didn’t know what the temperature was, nor did I care; all I knew was it was hot and a perfect day to have fun.  Due to the chance of rain, my parents being the responsible people they are, made sure to remind my brother and I that if it started to get cloudy, to get out of the water.

We engaged in your typical family beach activity.  We found shells, played ball, attempted to make sand castles and of course we swam.  The water was nice and cool.  It was extremely refreshing especially after all the running and sweating that we were doing.  My parents told me not to venture out to far but too far to a 10-year-old and too far for his parents aren’t necessarily the same.  Unfortunately all good things must come to an end and without warning the sky started to blacken, the waves became choppy and my mother yelled out, “Boys, it’s time to go!”.  Reluctantly but obediently, I complied.

The rest of my family was already at the shore as I was swimming in.  As a result of the shifting tide, I didn’t realize how far out or how deep the water was where I had ventured.  Suddenly I felt it.  There was a slight brush against my leg, which I mistook for seaweed.  The touch made me a little uncomfortable but I was a confident swimmer.  Then it happened!

I felt what seemed like an arm start to wrap around my foot.  I began to swim faster when I felt a tug.  I was immediately pulled under water but was just as suddenly released.  Then it happened again, the last thing I heard was my mother cry out, “My baby!”.  As I was dragged underwater, there I was, face to face with a Kraken!  It had snuck in undetected under the rising of the waves.  The original Clash of the Titans had just been released and here I am being attacked by a creature I thought was only a myth.  I wasn’t going down without a fight!

I was able to wrestle myself away to come up for one more long gasp of air.  I knew I would have to hold my breath for longer than humanly possible.  Thankfully I had the pocket knife my grandfather had given me for my birthday.  I also knew from watching Jacques Cousteau that squids have three hearts.  As I began to slice what seemed like almost impenetrable skin-like armor, the sea began to turn bluish gray and there were lightning strikes all around me.  The lightning was terrifying but provided just enough light for the task.  With its huge eyes staring at me, it almost seemed to smile then grimace as my boyish yet sinewy arms were moving the knife with the precision of a surgeon.  I was nearly a mile under water when thankfully an air bubble appeared allowing me to exhale and retake a breath.  As I located the third heart and began to remove it from its owner, I was amazed it was still alive.  Being nearly 3 miles under the sea at this point, I discovered a startling truth.  Kraken’s have 5 hearts!

The rest of the details are too shocking, gruesome and unsettling to relive on this page.  Thankfully my survival skills were honed enough and I was able to defeat the beast.  As I struck the final death-blow I said, “Release Me Kraken!”.  As the monster lay in the water floating, I severed one of its tentacles for a souvenir, knowing full well no one would believe me without proof.  Sadly, it was much to heavy for my arms to cart since fatigue was starting to set it.  My evidence was lost at sea.

I finally resurfaced about an hour later both exhausted and sore.  (I will eternally be grateful to the family of Orcas that assisted in getting me to the surface but that’s a tale for another time.)  I collapsed onto the shore witnessing my father fearfully worried with mother and brother sobbing; all of them thinking and terrified that I had been lost forever.  I told them about my duel in the deep but as I suspected, while they were thrilled to see me, NO ONE believed me!

Rarely a day goes by when I don’t think of that day and how things could have gone differently. If not for my expert skills from my training, this story may never be known!  I have never looked at calamari the same way since.  I will sometimes look at it before eating and say “Tell your friends about me!”.

That ladies and gentleman is the true story about the events surrounding the day I was stung by a 2 inch jellyfish!  That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!