Pick Me Up! Special – September 2019

KristinaDeJesus,

32,has

learnedtomake

themostof

lifewithjustonearm...

WORDS

AND

IMAGES:

SWNS

LUCKY

T

he sun beat down and the

warm lake lapped

around us as me and 14

pals chattered excitedly.

It was a scorcher!

On a girls’ trip away, we’d

travelled from New York and were

spending the first day on Lake

Travis, in Austin, Texas.

Swimming, sunbathing, taking

photos from a floating pontoon in

the centre of the clear blue water.

Perfect!

It was 7 October 2017, around

5:30pm – and as we got ready to

return to the dock, I jumped back

into the water to cool off one last

time before leaving.

But, hitting the water, I felt a

strong current instantly pull me

under the boat.

As hard as I tried, I wasn’t strong

enough, and I couldn’t get back up.

I was starting to panic.

My biggest fear was getting

trapped underneath and drowning.

Being pulled down further under

the boat, I suddenly heard horrible

grinding sound.

Frantic, I flailed my arms, kicking

my legs wildly.

The next thing I knew, the

current flung me out.

My head was above water.

Phew!

Thrashing about

frantically, I spluttered,

gasping for air.

I was dazed and

disorientated.

I then realised that I

was behind the boat, at

least 100ft away.

But I was alive.

In the distance, I

heard the girls on the

boat, screeching.

My best friend Rita,

31, jumped in, a life

jacket in her hand.

A strong swimmer,

she was with me in a

few moments.

Grabbing me, she

kept my head up.

‘You’re bleeding!’

she gasped.

‘I hadn’t even realised.

‘I’m OK,’ I said, noticing drops

of blood in the water.

Rita draped the life jacket over

my head.

Then she let out a loud, blood-

curdling scream.

Three more girls jumped in and

battled through the

current to get to us.

As they approached, I heard Rita.

‘Her arm’s gone. Her arm’s

gone,’ she whispered.

She hadn’t wanted me to hear.

But I did.

I was confused.

She must have been mistaken,

I heard my friends

screaming but I

had no idea why

My husband rushed to

my side and promised he

wasn’t going anywhere

I’d always been determined

but never expected to face

such a challenge