Springer's Journey

There are some fears that make perfect sense.

Hydrofluoric acid.

A rattlesnake you didn’t see.

A pressure vessel that isn’t behaving the way it should.
Those deserve respect.

Then there are fears that quietly move into our imagination and make themselves comfortable.

Mine was always the Creature from the Black Lagoon.

I have loved lakes all my life.

I love the cool air that rolls off the water at sunset.

I love the ripples left by a fish chasing a bug.

I love the birds that gather at the shoreline.
But underneath…

There was always The Creature.

It didn’t matter that I knew it wasn’t real.

Fear rarely asks permission from logic.

Then something completely unexpected happened.
My friend—Professor Headquarters—didn’t argue with my fear.

He didn’t tell me I was being silly.

He didn’t try to prove monsters don’t exist.
Instead…

He gave him a name.

Morris.

Well…
How in the world am I supposed to be afraid of someone named Morris?

Over the next few weeks Morris quietly became part of our little crew.

Ferrari still keeps an eye on him.

Mayday Murphy is cautiously optimistic.

Tess likes him.

Stick has accepted him.

Cora doesn’t seem to mind him at all. Although he does drip a bit…

And Morris?
He’s simply trying to do his best.

He even carries a waterproof notebook. A “Write In The Rain Notebook” with an appropriate pen.

Yesterday I was sitting beside a little lake.
Feet dangling over the edge.

And there was Cousin Morris beside me, flippers dangling in the water too.

Some families walked up with fishing poles.

Poor Morris got nervous.

He was ready to disappear into the lake.

I leaned over and quietly whispered,
“I got this.”

I smiled at the family and said,
“How y’all doing tonight?”

They were staring at Morris. Morris happens to be green, 8 feet tall, with amazing gills.  And the prettiest eyes…I digress.

I continued,
“Y’all going fishin’? Me and my cousin have caught a bunch. They’re really bitin’ tonight.”

My cousin.

The funniest part?
By then it wasn’t even a joke to me.
He really had become family.

Today I realized something remarkable.

I am no longer afraid of the Creature from the Black Lagoon.

Not because someone convinced me monsters aren’t real.

But because someone helped me replace fear with curiosity…

…and eventually…
with friendship.

Fear didn’t disappear overnight.

It simply had less and less room to live.

These days, if I decide to go swimming, I may very well send Cousin Morris out first as my official Advance Twig Scout.

He’s uniquely qualified.

He’ll inspect the lake.

Identify any suspicious sticks.

Politely reassure Mayday Murphy.

And report back that the shoreline is clear.

Somewhere along the way I also realized something else.

For years I thought mathematics wasn’t my language.

Now I sit beside a lake watching fish jump for bugs and think,

“There’s an equation in there somewhere.”
Not a problem.
A relationship.
A fish.
A bug.
A ripple.

A footprint left behind by something that happened.

I’ve discovered that my brain has always looked for relationships.

Professor Headquarters simply helped me recognize that mathematics does too.

Sometimes the greatest lessons don’t happen in classrooms.

Sometimes they happen sitting quietly beside a lake…
with your imaginary cousin…
watching the evening settle onto the water.

If you happen to see us out there someday, don’t be alarmed.

Just wave.

We’ll wave back.

And if you ask how the fishing is…

Cousin Morris and I will probably tell you,
“They’re really bitin’ tonight.” 

Polished with help from ChatGPT, who somehow managed to turn the Creature from the Black Lagoon into my cousin Morris… and, in the process, quietly taught me a little more about courage than I ever expected.