SWIMMING LESSONS-Persevering Resolve

I was seven when I had my first swimming lessons. My mother and father thought we should learn how to swim when we were young. The YMCA of Toccoa, Georgia was offering swimming lessons over a two week period. Mom and dad had to put some money out for this, but even with a limited budget, they made this a priority.

Just like all on-going classes, this one had “rumors” floating around it from by gone years. The older children who had taken the “beginners” class already, wanted to put a healthy scare into the younger children. They began to tell us that we’d better learn how to swim pretty quickly because the last Friday, the instructors would throw you into twelve feet whether you were ready or not. I don’t think they realized how much this paralyzed so many in the beginners class...or maybe they did.

I knew as soon as I heard the rumor that I would resolve to learn everything I could, every day we had lessons. I didn’t want to be thrown in and be helpless. I worked and worked and worked. I’d volunteer when the instructors wanted someone to illustrate a new concept. I was determined to learn. I was determined to swim.
The final day rolled around. There were many children standing around scared of the “final swim in twelve feet.” We were to swim across the pool one time. That is how one graduated from beginner to intermediate. I remember several children so traumatized that they were crying and clinging. Watching them tremble did put a bit of fear in all of us.

I remember praying every night about that final test. Somehow, with God’s help, I passed the class that day and moved on up to the next level. I have enjoyed a lifetime of swimming. Passing this test gave me the courage to develop my swimming skills even further. That sense of accomplishment is a driving force. In fact, swimming was my favorite summer time recreational activity for many years. I even went out for my YMCA lifeguards certificate in my middle school years.

It’s good to face your fears. It’s good to have dedication and determination. Sometimes that type of resolve is the only thing that conquers ones fears.