Under water

I have a new goal this summer - learning to swim. There are some items that have been on my "to-do" list for decades and this is one of them. I don't particularly have a phobia for water and it seemed like a cool thing to learn. The barriers however, were many, beginning with the lack of a swimming pool that was conveniently located, inhibition in wearing a swimsuit, finding a suitable coach and of course, the usual excuse - I just don't have time for this. When the time is right, most excuses simply vanish (or should I say, dissolve?).

I have a pool in the building where I now live. I bought a modest swimsuit that suits my sensibilities. My daughter is my coach. And I truly do have the time now. As I always say, there are a 100 reasons to NOT do something. There is only one reason do something - because you want to. Right now, I want to learn to swim.

Aparna has been a great teacher so far. I am her first student and she is amazingly intuitive in breaking it down to small steps and incredibly patient. As adults, we snap much more at children when they fail to master what appears to be simple tasks to us grownups. Add to that the emotionally charged atmosphere of a parent-child relationship. It is almost as bad as your spouse teaching you to drive a car. But when the child teaches, perhaps there is something about this upside-down situation that removes the obstacles.

I remember taking Aparna to the local pool 3 days a week from age 2 to 6 to first learn and then master swimming. I had noticed her comfort when immersed in water at her first bath in the initial two weeks of her life. She was happy to jump into the pool and obediently followed the instructions of the youngsters who served as coaches for little kids in the Santa Clara pool in California. She would come out happy, tired and extremely hungry. In the car on the way back home, she would gobble the food, drink juice and fall asleep. It took a lot of effort for me to make time on weekday evenings after work to ensure she did not miss any classes. But today, when I see her swimming so effortlessly I feel so happy and proud. Not of her talent or my contribution but the fact that when a natural talent is honed, it brings joy to the person and to others as well. Although there were years when she did not get into a pool, she takes to the water like a fish, each time she has the opportunity. Quite often Aparna is asked by total strangers if she competes in swimming meets.

Now the roles are reversed and she is leading me. What better way for me to try my hand (and feet) at something new. I would like to put new things on my to-do list once this one gets crossed off.