My new story does have some basis in reality. I did have a favorite canoeing partner and we did take many trips together. He was tall and slender and had a powerful stroke. We functioned very well together. We not only went on canoe trips, but we backpacked and took bicycle trips together as well. I recall times when we would take a break from a rather strenuous stretch of terrain. We would lie down on a flat rock, or maybe a wooden bridge that traversed a marshy area. There we would take a short nap, allowing that soothing warmth of the sun to funnel energy back into our weary bodies.
We rarely disagreed. Both of us were hard workers. He worked with me at one job I had while in college, and played with me on many softball, football, and basketball teams.
He is now fighting Parkinson's, and our days of strenuous activity together are over. I did take him out on my boat recently, and we shared a good time together. We traveled to the secret lake mentioned in the story, and we did a little fishing. Another friend of mine, who has spent most of his life on the Amazon, told me that the channel back to the lake reminded him allot of Brazil, except for the fact that the trees were much smaller.
It took my friend a few days to recover after the boat trip, but we did make another memory.