His older brother, Ibrahim, on the other hand, hated water. But it didn't used to be like that before. Ibrahim was a kid who loved the water. So much, in fact, that his family had moved to a house with a pool because of his love of swimming. Ibrahim would swim in it every day after school.

Then, two years ago, Ibrahim had gone to Mammoth Mountain with his family. There, he and his family rented a small motorboat and took it on the beautiful lake. They had stopped the motor and were taking in the view. The dark green trees looked beautiful surrounding the deep blue water.

Ibrahim reached over the edge to touch the water and lost his balance. He fell into the water headfirst. It felt like needles were piercing him all over his body, and his body started becoming numb.

He moved his arms and legs frantically, and finally his head came above water, gasping for air. His parents pulled him out, and he was safe.

Still, ever since that icy fall at Mammoth Mountain, he had had a fear of water, and he refused to even sit in the shallow end of the pool.

The lock clicked as Mustafa unbolted it. He pushed back the chair, turned the doorknob and ran out to the back yard. He couldn't contain himself and ran to the pool, eagerly laughing to get in. The breeze made small ripples in the pool, and the leaves rustled in the trees. Mustafa ran to the edge and splashed the water with his hand. He giggled with glee, and stood up and jumped up and down.

Ibrahim had just come downstairs to get a snack when he heard Mustafa laughing. He walked to the back door and opened it just in time to see his two-year old brother jump into the pool with a big smile on his face.

"Mustafa!" he yelled. "Get out of the water!" But it was too late. Mustafa was under water, and he was not coming up. Without hesitating, Ibrahim ran to the pool and jumped in. He swam to his brother, scooped him out of the water, and placed him on the dry concrete.

Mustafa opened his eyes and looked at his older brother with a smile on his face. "Mustafa swimming water," he babbled.

"Don't you EVER do that again! Do you understand? If you want to go in the water, ask me. We'll go together."

Ibrahim hugged Mustafa close, thanking God he was safe.

He smiled as he thought of the water around him. It felt good to be in the pool after so long. Maybe the water's not so bad after all, he thought, already starting to make plans for how he would teach his little brother to swim.