MrShineyhead's Travels:
Deaf Dog in the Park | State Fair | MrWildWildWest | Gone Fishin' | The Pirate | Me Here!

Tales in The Dark:
The Mountain Lion | Ice Lake | Civil War | Lorelei | The Goblins

With a special ASL translation of:
The Star-Spangled Banner

Ice Lake

It had been snowing for awhile, resulting in about two feet of snow on the ground.  A man and his dog decided to go for a walk.  The man petted his beautiful dog, a furry Husky with bright, sparkling blue eyes.

The man and his dog walked together through the thick forest, surrounded by trees.  Finally, they reached a clearing in the trees, where a large expanse of white lay before them.  The man realized that in fact the lake had frozen over, but it seemed to him that the ice was quite thick, and therefore safe.

The man and his dog made their way to the middle of the iced-over lake, where they stopped to take in the stunning view of the trees and mountains surrounding them.

All of a sudden, and without warning, the ice began to crack around both the man and his dog in every direction!  The dog scurried to safer ground, but the man struggled to keep his balance. The ice was separating faster than he could move! Finally, he could no longer keep upright and he plunged off the piece of ice he was standing on, and into the icy water.

As the man slipped beneath the ice and the water roiled in the open hole, the man’s dog circled the hole, frantically looking for his master.  After a few seconds, the man appeared in the hole, and the Husky reached down and grabbed his master by the shirt and with all of his strength, pulled the man to safety and out of the frigid water.

“You saved my life!” the man exclaimed to his dog.

“Aahhhoooo!!” the dog raised his snout to the sky and let out a howl.

The man got shakily to his feet, and soaking wet and freezing made his way to the shore.  He began to gather some wood in preparation to make a fire, but when he was ready to light the fire, he realized his matches were wet and he was unable to get a flame. 

He stroked his dog as the dog let out another deep howl. Shaking uncontrollably, the man grew colder as the sun went down and darkness fell.

Once again, the man tried to rub two sticks together in a vain effort to start a fire. He was freezing cold.

Suddenly, the man felt warm. Feeling his face and hands he felt a glowing warmth spread throughout his body.  This was wonderful!

Then he noticed his dog begin to walk away, his usually perky ears drooping downward as he paused to look back at his master and then on he went. Further into the distance the dog went, as the man called after him over and over again with no response.

Periodically the dog would glance back over his shoulder, only to see his master, frozen to death in mid-scream…

Translation done by: Tammera J. Richards, BS, CI & CT; SC:L; NAD IV