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Back to BubbeWhat is more innocent than a child's preoccupation with a pail and shovel at the beach, creating an imagined world, only to be later stripped naked by his mother as she unnecessarily changes his bathing suit in front of the world to see? That world is sunbathers reposing in various shades of wan and melanoma, some staring blankly at the horizon, others lying face down with only a ratty towel separating their lips from the sand. The sun is making you dizzy by the end of afternoon.
Then there are reminders of the constant dangers.
“Don't dig that hole too deep. It'll collapse, and you'll suffocate.”
Most dangers centered on drowning.
“Be careful of the undertow. It'll drag you out and you'll drown.”
“The waves are too big. They'll knock you over and you'll drown.”
“Do
