"I Don't Know Why She Swallowed a Fly"

I was singing this rather morbid song while Graham was napping a few days ago. Yes, kids' songs are so ingrained in my brain that I often sing them even when Graham is not around! While I was singing the song, memories came back of one summer in France.

During high school and college, I spent 3 years at Camp of the Peaks in the French Alps. One summer we took a trip to the city of Briançon (The highest town in Europe). After spending the day shopping, we made our way to a bridge where people were repelling down to the river bank. I was obviously not the worrier that I am now, because I thought nothing of letting a couple of guys lower me to the river bank. They weren't with a company; they just set up shop on the bridge and let everyone daring repel for free. Suspicious, you might think, but I naively joined everyone else and made my way down. No falls, no scrapes, and no hidden fees. Thank goodness they didn't go on strike during my repel! Once all of our group reached the bottom, we realized we were quite far from where the last bus of the day departed. In a panic, we started sprinting. Suddenly, I felt a burning in my nostrils and the back of my throat. I was breathing clean mountain air, so what could cause this sensation? Then, I felt a cough come on. I covered my mouth, let out a good cough, and looked down to see a saliva coated fly in my hands. I couldn't believe it. I had actually inhaled a fly through my nose and coughed it out of my mouth! It was gross, it was hysterical, but I didn't have time to recuperate or to tell anyone. We just kept treking until we finally made it to the bus station. I was going to tell Graham this story, but I think I will refrain for now. I don't want him living life terrified that his mother swallowed a fly and perhaps she'll die.