My Childhood Memory of Waterfalls

When I was a child, my family lived in New Delhi, India. Every summer, the heat became so strong that we could hardly breathe. To escape the heat, we drove up into the Himalayan mountains. The road was narrow and twisty, and sometimes we had to stop to let goats cross. But the best part of the trip was always the waterfalls. Whenever we passed one, my father would pull over.

The children would run to the back of the car, grab our bathing suits, and change faster than you could say "waterfall." We would jump under the water, laugh, shout, and dance. It was always cold—shivering, teeth-chattering cold—because the water was melted snow from way up in the mountains. But even though we froze, it was the happiest kind of cold. It felt like a secret gift from nature.

Years later, I moved to the United States. One summer, my brother invited me to visit him in Ithaca, New York. He said, "Let's go swim under a waterfall." I smiled and said, "Sure." I packed my swimsuit and prepared myself for the icy shock. Some things, I thought, never change.

But when we got to the waterfall, something strange happened. My brother jumped in first and said, "Come on in, it's great!" I stepped under the falling water, and instead of shivering, I relaxed. The water was warm. Not just warm—delightfully warm, like stepping into a gentle bath. Instead of screaming with glee, I savored the waterfall for more then 20 minutes, as if it were a jacuzzi, letting the falling water pound down onto my head and neck. 

How could this be? I wondered. Waterfalls were supposed to be cold. That was the rule, right?

My brother laughed. "Here in Ithaca, the river above the waterfall flows slowly over sun-warmed rocks before it falls. The sun heats the rocks, and the rocks warm the water."

I stood under that waterfall, smiling like a child again. It felt like a hug from the earth itself. I took a deep breath and said to myself, "I never imagined a waterfall could be warm. But I am not going to argue with it. You never want to argue with a waterfall."

Sometimes, life surprises us. Sometimes, all you can do is enjoy the moment—and let the warm water fall.

(This story is donated to the public domain.)