The Chijioke Life

"But, mom, you can't promise me that nothing bad will happen! I don't want to go!!", tears trickled down my 9yr old daughter's cheeks as she wrapped her arms tightly around herself and stared up at me desperately. We were standing in the center of the canoe/kayak office. A crowd of laughing, chatting people moved around us, heading through the open garage doors to the big, yellow bus waiting to take us to our drop off point. It was the 4th of July and we had decided to get outdoors and try our family hand at canoeing. It was another first for us, several of the kids had already mentioned the "what if" thought that always run through our minds when we gear up for what should be a fun activity -- but for us brings back memories of packing up for another fun summer day. As we packed the car that morning, drove into the beat up parking lot, lush greenery waving around us in the sunshine and warm breeze, I could hear the echoes of the day we did all of the