30 Day Writing Challenge--Day 2--Your Earliest Memory

My earliest memory? How do I know it's my earliest? I mean, when I saw this topic, a whole bunch of memories came flooding back to my childhood. But how do I know which one was the first? It's all kind of a blur of back then. Some of it has to be from stories passed down by my parents and grandparents, but does that mean it's MY memory or one of theirs? My boyfriend always complains that I never forget anything, but I've noticed as I'm getting older, that I do tend to forget things.

The memory that keeps flooding back to me though is the one where I was with my mother and brother at a friend's swimming pool. I was probably 3 or 4. I was riding on my mom's back, like a baby koala, when I slipped off and went under water. I remember blowing all sorts of bubbles and I'm sure the adults all panicked, but when I was lifted up and out of the pool I remember saying "Did you see all the bubbles?" Maybe that's my mind's way of coping with what was probably a scary experience for everyone else, and maybe even for me, but I remember it as pleasant. Perhaps that's why today, still, water grounds and soothes me. I've always loved swimming and being near waves, whether it's a lake or an ocean. I feel most at peace after taking a cruise so water plays an important part of my life.

That's the real first vivid memory, I have. I can remember the pool, I can remember the feel of my mom's skin and I definitely remember the bubbles. I've gone under water a lot of times. Another memory of going underneath in a pool was when we were living in New Mexico...my brother and I had gotten Chiquita boogie boards at a soccer game as a promotional gift. I was using one on my back (vertically) and my legs were over the other one (horizontally). My mother mentioned, whispered actually,  something about Haagen-Dazs ice cream, and I said... "Haagen-Dazs?" and the board behind my back shot out like a rocket, and I went under with my legs still over the other board, like a ledge. I remember laughing at that point too, and when I righted myself, everyone was laughing. Probably a happier memory for my mom than when I was 3 or 4, but similar in my mind.