Pool Rules
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Rajeev works-out every day after work in the sports center gym. He felt that it was his regular exercise that kept his back ache away, which he used to have occasionally. He felt really bad and uncomfortable if he skipped working-out for a couple of days. His wife Rekha also goes to gym with him some days. Despite his encouragement, she was not very regular at gym and she had many excuses like too tired, wanted to make a few phone calls this evening etc. But she decided to come today, because their daughter, Neethu wanted to swim in the indoor swimming pool adjacent to the gym. They had a family membership in the sport center, so the family members can use different facilities there. One end of the pool is six, seven feet deep. But there are two guards at work at the pool watching out for kids. Moreover Neethu knows swimming. Last summer Rekha took her to swimming lessons, and she also practiced throughout the summer. So they were comfortable leaving Neethu at the pool alone.

“No diving. Just swim. Take breaks if you want to.
We will be back in forty-five Minutes.”

Neethu was already in the water and ducked before Rekha could finish.

Rehka always did bicycles or elliptical trainers for the first half hour of her workout; and she read something while exercising, she said it is boring otherwise. Rajeev preferred treadmill to warm-up and he watched TV while working-out. Elliptical trainers are located close to the entrance and you can see a portion of the swimming pool from there. Rekha started with elliptical trainers, from there she bend her body and tried to look for Neethu on times. But she could not see her, as Neethu was in the waterslide diving into the water on the other side of the pool. She was afraid to do that until last week, but once she found out that she could do it and that it was fun, she always wanted to do that.

They had plans to go to Satheesh’s house for dinner that evening. Satheesh’s wife Lakshmi was calling them for a while. They were putting it off for many reasons. Actually it was Rajeev, who does not want to go anywhere. He liked to spend his evenings sitting at home watching TV or reading books. But Rekha enjoy going out to places and meeting people, where she can showoff her new dress or a piece of jewelry and chat non stop. According to her, it is the only fun and enjoyment we have here in America away from our real home and family. She did not agree with Rajeev, when he talked about the facilities available here in America which we can use to improve the quality of life. She did not think those things could offset what they are missing out, mostly family and friends.

Rajeev finished his sets fast and came out of the gym early. He took only a little over half an hour today. He gave signal to Rekha with his hands, asking her to come out; she was still in the elliptical. She asked him to go and pick up Neethu from the pool.

“I will wait outside”, She said.

No one was in the pool at that time. There was notice saying that “pool is temporarily closed” and he saw little kids waiting outside in their swimming dresses wet and dripping. Some one said, “They will open it in fifteen minutes”. Neethu was sitting in a chair beside the pool, and the pool boys were cleaning the area around the pool. Rajeev went into the pool from the back door to pick Neethu up. She was dripping too and her eyes were red.

“What happened? “ Rajeev asked her by holding her hands.

“I got sick and threw up”, She said.

“She did a lot of diving today. I think that made her sick”, a pool boy said.

“And she can’t swim here today. If someone get sick and throws up we won’t allow them to swim on the same day. That is the pool rule”, the boy continued.

“That’s fine” Rajeev said wiping Neethu’s head and body with a towel.

“Amma, I can do the water slide and jump into six feet now. I am not afraid”, Neethu said looking up at Rekha’s face when they found her standing outside the building.

“Did you do a lot that today?” Rajeev asked

“NO”, she said.
“She made a mess there. She threw up in the pool. They closed the pool and cleaning” Rajeev said to Rekha.

“I did not throw up in the pool, only on the side of the pool” Neethu corrected Rajeev.

“You made a mess there anyway “, Rajeev said walking towards the place where they parked their car.

“I told you not to give her any food before going to swimming”, he said to Rekha.

“I did not give her any food, just a glass of milk”, said Rekha

“Don’t give her anything before going to the pool. I felt very bad that they had to close the pool and cleaning all that. This is a common pool, we should know that”, Rajeev said

“Never mind, these things happens in a pool where a lot of kids go to swim. And we are paying for the facilities. It is their duty to keep it clean. “, Rekha said spreading a dry towel on the car seat for Neethu to sit without wetting the car seat.

“Can you sit with me in the back seat, Amma ? “ Neethu asked as she did always.

“No. I will sit in the front seat with Dad”, Rekha said closing the doors.

* ** ** * ** * ** * ** *

Hurry or no hurry Rajeev takes bath quick. He dresses up even quicker. Blue jeans and a shirt, usually half sleeve, is his usual dress for any informal parties. When he came out of the dressing room, Rekha was putting the wet clothes of Neethu in the washing machine. She already gave bath to Neethu and dressed her up.

“It is already seven. We should be there by 7:30”, Rajeev Said walking down the steps towards the family room.

Neethu was in the family room just looking at the gift, neatly rapped with colorful gift rap. They always take a small gift when they are invited to dinner parties. It could be a toy for the kids in the house or a piece of nice but inexpensive chinaware.

“What is in this gift box, Daddy”, Neethu asked

“Don’t know, ask Amma”, He said, switching on the TV.

“Cartoons, Please” Neethu said when TV came on.

Actually he wanted to watch the evening news. But he put cartoon for her and sat with her for some time, looking at the TV without paying any attention.

Neethu laughed loud when a bunny choked on carrot, that it was eating and it eyes came out and finally falling on its nose.

“Is it funny”, He asked

“Yea”, she said without taking her eyes off the TV.

It was already seven-thirty. Rajeev went up to check on Rekha.

“We are getting late”, He said.

“I will be out in a minute”, she said.

“What are you wearing today, Sari or Indian national dress juridhar “, He asked, thinking that she would take more time if she plans to wear sari.

“I thought sari is our national dress and juridhar is more like a north Indian dress”, She said

“Well, sari is also north Indian. I think Raja Ravi Varma’s paintings made it popular in the south”. He said

“Is it so”, she was curious.

“I don’t know. I just thought so.”, he said.

She came out wearing a light yellow juridhar. She also wore a red dot of Vermilion powder on the upper forehead, right at the beginning of the central parting of her hair.

“Where is Neethu” , she asked

“Watching TV”, He said

* ** ** * ** * ** * ** *

“Come on in. We just called you in your home number. But no body picked up, so we thought you were already started from there” Lakshmi said, while they were walking into their house.

“Sorry, we are a little late”, said Rajeev.

“No problem, No problem. You can leave late too. Tomorrow is Saturday. So it is all fine”, Satheesh said cheeringly.

Satheesh and Lakshi have two kids and the elder one is about the age of Neethu. All the kids ran upstairs saying something between each other and giggling.

Rajeev, Rekha and Laksmi sat down in the family room and Satheesh poured red wine in two glasses.

“Red wine is very good for health”, Satheesh said.

“Yaaa Yea”, Rekha said mockingly. She did not like Rajeev drinking.

Lakshmi did not say anything. She switched on the TV and tuned to a new Indian channel, which they are getting through their dish antenna.

Laksmi and Rekha talked about the different contestants in the music program showing in the TV.

Satheesh and Rajeev sat there and drank wine. They did not get into their usual subjects like Indian politics and job market in Bangalore or Chennai, yet.


“We need at least three, four families to make the party fun, Right ?”, Rajeev said finishing the glass of wine.

Satheesh filled the glasses again and made some passing remarks about the singers came up on the TV.

“Can we have food now?” Lakshmi asked.

“Yes, I am hungry”, said Rekha,

“We went to gym today and that make me double hungry”, she continued.

“Where are the kids? Gave them food too.”, Said Satheesh.

“Yes. Yes. Give the kids first.”, Rajeev said.

“Neethu must be really hungry. She went for swimming today. She dived there too much, got sick and threw up in the pool” , Rekha said.

“Ayyoo! Don’t make that to happen again, Please. Very dangerous. Please don’t.” Lakshmi said with hands on her head.

“What? What happened? “ Rekha asked.

“Didn’t you know about that? It happened just three days ago.” Lakshmi said sitting down on the love seat opposite to the sofa where Rajeev and Rekha were sitting.

“It was in the Realton apartment complex on the south side. They have a very good pool there.
This family, also from south India, goes to swimming there every day it seems, father, mother and a five year old boy. The mother was pregnant, so she sat on a Chaise Lounge watching them swimming. The boy did not know swimming well, and the father was teaching him. After a while the boy got hungry and went up to his mother to eat something; they pack snacks when they go for swimming. You know that itself is a bad habit. You should not eat anything while swimming, especially kids. This boy, stuffing something in his mouth, he jumped right into the pool, his father did not see, he was talking to someone.

You know what happened. In the jump, he drank water and he threw up and choked, nobody saw.. He drowned for a minute without anybody seeing. Then somebody shouted and they pulled him out of the water. The boy was still choking, short of breath and he was blue. Someone called emergency. The boy was shivering and jerking, he could not breath.. he was already blue when they took him out of water. His mother, you know she was eight month pregnant; she fainted and fell down on the floor. They didn’t know what to do. Paramedics reached in fifteen minutes. But it was too late for the boy. The boy was gone, they couldn’t save him. He was already dead ten minutes ago by then. Think, just five years old, in front of his father and mother. They couldn’t do anything, helpless. Paramedics took the mother to the hospital. “

“It is very dangerous, Swimming pools.. … You know”. Lakshmi said, to finish up her narration.

“But can’t they …. Why shouldn’t…. Don’t he“ Rekha could not finish her sentence. Actually she did not know what to say. She was in a shock.

She looked at Rajeev blindly, but he was staring at the TV.

No body said anything for a while. Indian music from the TV filled the room.

Suddenly there was cry from upstairs. Kids were very calm until then. Lekshmi ran up to check on the kids. Rekha also followed her.

“What happened there? “ Satheesh asked loudly

“Nothing, just toys sharing problem”, Lakshmi replied.

They did not stay long after dinner.

In the car Rekha sat with Neethu in the back seat.

When the car started Rekha said “Next time when she go for swimming, you should also be there with her. Okay”.

Rajeev tried to see Neethu through the rear viewing mirror. But he saw Rekha was looking at him. They looked at each other for a second and did not say anything.