Ponds...

There are many different sorts of ponds, in my opinion. There are the beautiful ponds of the mountains where the lily pads bloom and there are little frogs along the banks with lots of grass and beautiful scenery to look at and you hate to even wade along the bank for fear of disturbing the pristineness of the area.

That isn't our pond.

There is the pond that you think of in a park where people ride paddle boats around and the ducks follow in their wake trying to see if they will throw them a breadcrum or some other tasty tidbit. If you're lucky, you will get to see a swan or two with their signets swimming by in their beauty.

That isn't our pond either.

There are various ponds, as I have already said, but not one of them can beat our pond...well, I suppose that depends on how you look at ponds.

Our pond is a man-made pond and the fact that I say it is "our" pond, doesn't really mean it is "our" pond, it is a neighbor's pond and it is used to catch irrigation water for the pastures. Now, you have to realize that out here, water is a scarce commodity and it can be hard to come by. People don't much care where they get their water as much as the fact that they have water, ANY water in which to irrigate their crops with. This is the case with our pond.

This pond is built smack dab in the middle of a pasture with the branding corrals a small hop, skip and jump away. It is not beautiful, it is not pristine, it is not even in the least bit attractive for that matter, but it is very practical. Cattle can come and drink out of it and much of the local wildlife come by to quench their thirst as well. There are catfish and other types of fish in the pond only because it has been stocked by the local boys for the past 30 or so years. In the center, this pond reaches 30 feet deep so there might even be a snapping turtle or two, who knows?

For a boy, this pond draws them for many reasons, to fish, to watch the wildlife, to see how good their toy boats they carved can float and so on. This time of year, it draws them for another reason, to swim.

Now, you see, when you swim in a man-made pond built right in the middle of a pasture you have a lot of obstacles to maneuver through before you enter the pond itself. On occasion there may be a bull who refuses to move because it is much cooler by the pond than it is up on the side of the mountain, but most of the time the most major thing you have to maneuver through to get to the pond are old pieces of barbed wire, a few pieces of wood with nails sticking out of it, a stray horse shoe or two and cow pies.

On one side of the pond there are tall sagebrush that make a barrier for it from the rest of the world. There is no grass along the banks of the pond, the cattle have long since worn anything resembling grass down to the nubs and it has dried up and blown away. Occasionally, a whirlwind will spin a little dust devil across the bank and out into the pond.

This lack of beauty does not dissuade any boy in the neighborhood from enjoying the depths of the cold water and lack of parental supervision because one or more parent is usually trying to get them to do just one more chore in the heat of the day before they leave to go swim. They all think it is a wonderful release to go swim at the pond.

My sons spend quite a few of their summer afternoons there, honing their swimming skills and also learning the tactical maneuvers of mud wars. In heat that is higher than most fevers, it feels wonderful to them spend hours out in the water.

Occasionally, there is the wound that occurs from not being careful enough. Either a cut toe or a torn fingernail from digging into the mud at the bank is the most common. My son who plays football and basketball thinks nothing of coming home banged and bruised up after a game and says to me, "BOY, that was FUN!" I am certain they both feel the same way about swimming in the pond.

Call our pond ugly if you want.
It may not be pristine or even what most people would consider what a pond looks like.

In our eyes, it is a beautiful pond with lots of stories to tell of the success of learing to swim on one's back or how well their boat was built or even how deep they could dive before they have to return to the surface for air. It has raised 2 generations of children so far and I would not be surprised if it rasies another 3 before perhaps its time on this earth is through.

God willing, there will always be a pond in which a boy can learn to swim.