Just Keep Swimming

and that is all Olivia would do if given the choice. In addition to her lessons at the Y, she participated in "swim coaching" with the swim coach for Gainesville High School. His daughter, Lily Ramirez, will be attending the Olympic swimming trials this weekend so we wish her focus and luck!
Olivia and Coach...

Allison, Coach, Olivia...

Coach was great and as a bonus Olivia got a chance to attempt the high dive for the first time... bringing back memories of my first experience with the "walk of shame."

As I recall, I climbed the ladder that never seemed to end, only to find myself too high up and too far gone to turn back. Gripped with fear I stood on that board for what felt like hours listening to chants of "Jump!, Jump!, Jump!, Jump!, Jump!..." by the other kids lined up to have their now much awaited turn. My swim teacher was treading water below shouting up positive reinforcements, something to the likes of, "I'm right here! I'll grab you when you land! You can do it!" And I found myself in that childhood predicament of fear vs. embarrassment and could not move. Finally I succumbed to the fear and backed down the ladder.

So with hardened memories flung out of my brain's storage files and fluttering around my mind, I watched Olivia hesitantly grab the rails of the ladder. With a big grin, she stepped right up, marched out to the end and jumped. I couldn't believe my eyes. It happened so fast. No hesitation - fearless. In fact, after jumping in, she swam to the bottom before surfacing which freaked her coach out a bit. She said she wanted to touch the bottom. What a thrill for her and for me. Yet, I was left wondering how in the world could she do that and I couldn't? And how do we move that self-assurance to bike riding?!!

It's great having kids; among other things, they help you unleash experiences that have been safely tucked away for years and completely forgotten about until you see your own child reliving them, in their own way.

The approach...
The jump...
The addiction...
Oh, and if you are wondering about me, thanks to a great teacher and a bit of determination, I did jump off that high dive before my series of lessons was over. And 30 years later, I really conquered that initial fear when we bungee-jumped the Kawarau Bridge in Queensland, NZ in 2004, 43 m up (142 ft). My teacher would have been so proud.
Me...
Don...