The summer of 2004 was hot. I was only eight years old, my family and I had made the annual trip down to Iowa to visit our extended family; the Korporals. My mother was born in Iowa and grew up on the family farm before moving up to Calgary with my father. Every year our little family of four makes the two day trek down to the states to visit with the in-laws and chat with old family friends. My sister and I always look forward to this one and a half month trip because it means hanging out with our favorite cousins on the farm. The Korporal family farm in Tripoli, Iowa is one of the greatest places on earth, all of the outside world fades away and the rules of the law do not apply to whomever sets foot on Korporal property. The illegal shenanigans started when I was only 10, I started driving the old Jeep to and fro even venturing into town once in a while. We always set off fireworks on the weekends even though Iowa state law forbids the use of fireworks. Guns were shot without the proper license, the first time I ever shot a gun was when I was 6 or 7. This may sound like a dangerous place, on the contrary, living out in the country just meant an added amount of freedom and adventure to our dull and repetitive lives. My cousin, Ryan, is one of my greatest friends, he is three years older than me and has always been very influential in my life. Between the long talks before bed and the crazy games we would play in the barn, Ryan and I have built a very strong and close friendship. On this particular day: July 23rd, 2004, I was the one doing the influencing, which is probably why we got in so much trouble.

I remember the day being especially hot, maybe even record setting. The heat was intimidating, it threatened to melt us like cheese in a microwave. It was the kind of heat that seemed thick and wet, the humidity levels were crazy high. If you’ve ever experienced a humid temperature you know how the air seems to weigh down on your shoulders like a couple of sweaty, lazy elephants. We would have done anything to cool ourselves down, so we started brainstorming the best and most fun way to escape the heat. In the nearby town of Sumner, there was a great pool with a waterslide, diving boards and even a lazy river. This seemed like the perfect way to cool down, so we hopped in Ryan’s old pickup and drove into town so we could jump into the pool. Of course, the pool was closed. I remember being so angry, steam was probably coming off my cherry red face, the anger probably just heated me up even more. Maybe it was the anger that prompted me to make that bad decision.

One of the benefits of living on a farm means having a lot of privacy, but just because you live in the country doesn’t mean you are free of neighbors. In our case that was quite the opposite, the neighbors name was; Mr. Pritchert. He was a stubborn old man who probably hated happiness, his  scowl was permanently etched onto his face and his glasses always sat a few inches up on his nose. We called him; Wrinkle, the name is pretty self-explanatory. There was a gravel road that connected the two farms but it also separated the Korporal land from the Pritchert land. A creek flowed through the Pritchert land and at one point flowed parallel to the gravel road that separated the properties. When the road turned onto Wrinkles farm there was a bridge that connected him to the outside world, it was big enough to hold massive farm machinery and tractors but relatively narrow and small. Right by the bridge was an area of the creek that deepened and turned into a swimming hole, I would say it was about eight or nine feet deep.

While we were driving back from Sumner the idea hit me; “Let’s go down to the creek by the Pritchert bridge there, that would be the perfect place to swim!” I tried to convince Ryan that my idea was flawless.

“I don’t know.” he replied “what if we get caught by Wrinkle, he would kill us!”

“Who cares, we could park right by right by the road, if we had to we could make a quick escape.” I was begging him at this point.

After some more persuasive smooth talking, he finally gave in and we started down the gravel road to the bridge. When we arrived at the bridge we were stopped by a locked gate and a sign that read: “No Trespassing! Trespassers Will Be Prosecuted.” Ryan parked the pickup on the side of the road and we jumped the gate on foot, ignoring the sign completely. It was a two-minute walk down to the creek, there was no time to waste so we ran. I remember ripping off my shirt and jumping immediately into the swimming hole. As I hit the water the ice cold temperature of the creek provided immediate relief from the heat of the day. By the time we got to the creek it was pushing 2pm and the peak temperature had set in, probably around 95 to 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Ryan jumped in right behind me, almost landing on my head. We had a blast, it’s probably one of the most amazing times we have ever had together. The two of us swam and played in that creek for a good two or three hours having the time of our lives. For an eight year old life could not be any better, until we heard a car coming up the road. Ryan grabbed me by the arm and pulled me under the bridge with him, I don’t think he was as scared as I was but I could tell that he was panicking. We crawled up the side of the creek bank and tucked ourselves in between the bottom of the bridge and the soft dirt on the ground. I remember trying to squeeze in as much as humanly possible, I could barely breath. That’s when we heard the car pull onto the bridge and stop, the door opened and then slammed.

At this point of the day the heat had dissipated the shade under the bridge provided even more relief from the hot day yet I was still sweating like a pig. We saw Wrinkle poke his head over top of the bridge, he was staring at the water rushing down the creek. Trapped and scared, I started to shake. The minutes seemed to drag on like hours, and just when it seemed like he was about to leave we heard his old scraggly voice yell at us asking what he were doing there. I froze, that was the moment I realized how much trouble we were about to get in. Ryan got up and made his way out into the sunlight, Wrinkle recognized him and asked again what we were doing there. Ryan answered and then told me to get up and come out, Wrinkle didn’t recognize me so he asked who I was. I told him that I was just visiting from Canada and that I was sorry. He only seemed to get angrier and mumbled something to himself. Ryan and I slowly made our way up to the bridge where Wrinkle told us to get in his old Buick so he could drive us home. As we drove up the gravel road the car was deathly silent, I thought for sure that I was going to jail. When we got back to the Korporals farm my parents read me the riot act and ordered me to apologize to both Ryan and Mr. Pritchet.

In the moment I obviously regretted my actions and wished I could take it all back, but as I remember the way Ryan and I became even closer after our little adventure, I don’t have any regrets. Ryan and I had always been natural friends but after that moment we only became closer. When I remember all of the trouble we got into as boys, I wonder if we would be as close as we are now without all of the mischief that we raised. It goes to show that not all negative experiences turn out to be negative in the long run. Maybe breaking the law with someone is the best way to strengthen a relationship.

-Brad M.