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Comfortably Numb in Seven Minutes
The Journey of a Mermaid
My swim technique is based on my “terrified of drowning” 10-year-old self — the girl who hated swim lessons, the deep end, and gasped for breath in the shallow end with fingers clenched to the edge.
I could barely do the doggy paddle and a weak frantic front crawl, but the dolphin kick gave me joy. I didn’t need to use my arms — they clung to my sides, and I undulated my hips and flowed through the waves.
I pretended to be a mermaid.
Water play was fun — but I was happy to run through the sprinkler on my front lawn or splash in the pool with friends rather than suffer a frustrating swim session. When the last class ended, I was depleted and refused to take further lessons.
The Pacific Ocean
Forty years later, I was reeled into deep water when my 10-year-old son dared me to swim in the Pacific Ocean. I revived my inner child by swimming with my own child. She loved the water but was scared of drowning and possessed an anxious “tiptoe” attitude. He loved the water but wasn’t afraid and possessed a “just do it!” attitude.
When I started ocean swimming that summer with my son, I’d never swim in water above my chin. If I swam deeper, I thought the ocean would swallow me. I had visions of…