A Shock and a Surprise

Its amazing the little things that can transport you back to an event in your childhood. From the things that make up your happiest moments to things slightly less pleasant. It’s actually surprising when a string in your mind that you weren’t previously aware of is triggered, letting loose a rush of memories.
This morning my ‘string’ was given a little tug and it came at the most unlikely instant, though it was a rather fitting memory to be called upon under the circumstances. I was simply unplugging my laptop, getting ready to put it in its bag so I could go to work, when somehow I managed to place my finger in the wrong place, causing an electric shock to shoot all the way up my hand.
I was immediately transported to a day in my childhood that I will likely never forget, and the memory of which is now especially engraved in my mind. I was at a friends house playing outside by myself (I don’t know where everyone else was) when I took a very marked notice of a fenced off area with some very placid looking goats munching away at something or other. Being the child I was, that is, very much of an animal lover, I decided to get closer to the goats. So I walked slowly up to the fence and without thinking grabbed right onto it. What a shock (literally) when I found out it was an electric fence. Not even knowing that such things existed I thought I had been electrocuted and was now going to die. So I quietly backed myself up against the barn and sat down, waiting to die. Of course after a few moments I realized that I was still very much alive and began to think I would get in trouble for touching the fence. Then I really was hoping I would die so I could dodge my punishment, and instead of my parents being wrought with fury they would be stricken with sorrow. Of course I neither died nor got in trouble. When my mother and sister came looking for me I told them what happened and I think it is more likely they were laughing at me, not angry with me, though they pretended to be all concern for my sake.
What this memory has to do with me unwittingly sticking my finger in an electric socket, which was certainly less of a shock then grabbing onto an electric fence, is the thought that passed through my head when it happened. I immediately thought I was going to die, though I dismissed the idea within a second of thinking it and laughed at myself afterward.
Its funny to compare the two instances. The most recent being especially amusing because the same thought passed through my head as when I grabbed onto the electric fence, and since then I have matured by several years (and certainly I should know not to put my finger in an electric socket by now).
Again something a week or so ago triggered another memory concerning the same friend’s house where there happened to be (what seemed like) a very large coi pond with (what seemed like) very large fish living inside of it. I remember always being terrified of those fish, I was afraid I would fall in one day and they would eat me. I always fancied I could detect a malicious sneer whenever I made eye contact with those fish, for which reason I avoided them as much as possible.
So when having a look around inside of a local petstore you can imagine my surprise when I came across a large tub of water filled with coi fish. Nothing very alarming you would think since most of the fish were only a few inches long but then there was one particular fish that surfaced and looked at me with the most frightening glare ever to be detected in a fish. I could have sworn that fish was a descendent of those giant fish at my friends house, it had the same evil glint in it’s cold fish eyes and it must have been at least a foot long. I literally jumped back from the tub of water with an exclamation of surprise, though I was brave enough after a moment to have another look at the fish, at which point I realized it was only a very large fish and had no intention of harming me. And of course I thought I had been very silly thinking that this fish, a fish for goodness sake, would be harboring any evil thoughts towards anyone. I felt like apologizing to the fish for prejudging it but I was in public after all and I didn’t want to be seen talking to a fish.
I’m always having similar memories surfacing in my mind after some trigger reminds me of their existence. Needless to say I will be much more careful now when plugging and unplugging my laptop’s charger and I will certainly never invest in coi fish.