Swim or Sink

“Do you want to learn to swim?” asked my cousin. “Yes I do," I said.

Next thing I know my brief life of 5 years almost came to an end. You see, my cousin decided to teach me how to swim the old fashion way – by pushing me in the deep end of the pool without warning. The experience could have traumatized me but instead it instilled within my soul a valuable life lesson - you always have the choice to swim or sink (in this case drown). Obviously I decided to swim (doggy paddle to be specific) and pee-pee in the pool.

Fast forward 30 or so years to this past Saturday and that old swim or sink mentality still persists in my spirit (though not always in my actions). I have to confess, lately I’ve become a lot more cautious. Maybe it’s because I now have 3 children. Maybe it’s because at this point in my life I feel I have a lot more to lose. Whatever it is my sister says it needs to stop and I agree.

So back to this past Saturday. Inspired by my story above I awoke, carefully tied on my running shoes, worried a neighborhood kid might see my mismatching high performance apparel and laugh, double checked the battery life on my iPod, and ran down the street like a maniac. A few minutes later I was standing at the edge of a shimmering, and dangerously deep, lake by my house. I closed my eyes for a moment, felt the wind charge my Under Armour shirt (which I haven't washed yet beacuse my wife has me painting the laundry room prior to installing our new washer), and reflected on all that has happened to date since almost drowning at the age of 5. That didn’t last for long because I had a vision of Jason (yes from Halloween) sneaking up on me from the surrounding woods. In a flash I headed back for home.

Halfway home I started to feel dizzy. Then I saw one of my neighbors running my way and decided I better put on a good show. With all my might I puffed out my chest (what little there is because folks won’t subscribe and help me get a Bowflex) and gave him a stoic nod as he ran by. That bit of heroics cost me the last bit of energy I had and I barely made it home. Before going in I paused in the driveway to catch my breath and soon I was feeling good about my effort. That lasted until I walked in and told my wife where I had run to. She laughed under her breath and said, “That's it?” So much for spousal support (I still love her though).

On Sunday, my sister and only running partner (I'm too embarrased to run with anyone else yet), came out to the sticks to school me. Because I’m her older brother I had to play the part and pretend all was cool as we ran 4 minutes, walked 1 minute, ran 4 minutes, walked 1 minute, etc… This went on for 20 of the most grueling minutes I have ever had the pleasure of enduring. As she ran in front of me I begged God to keep me from falling in the gravel and ripping my knees to shreds. Every now and then she would say in a calm and nonchalant manner, "Look around at the lovely scenery." Little did she know I had lost the ability to see clearly somewhere in the middle of our run. When it was all over I was dazed and confused so when she told me to stretch I think I might have done something crazy. I wonder if people driving by thought I was a Cirque Du Soleil performer or something. That would be cool.

All in all things went well and I lived to write about it. Once my legs stop feeling like pair of Twizzlers fused to my body at the hip, I will get out and do it all over again.

So what’s the lesson of the day? You always have a choice in life. You can choose to swim or you can choose to sink, but you can’t do both. If you choose to swim the ocean is your playground. And if you feel like you have to pee-pee, that's ok too. Just make sure nobody's looking.

Check back tomorrow when I discuss my desire to skydive for the first time. I will be sure to avoid inviting my cousin on this adventure though.