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By ANN WORTHINGTON
It is often said that people have a fear of at least a few things in life. Mine is the fear of deep water.
I have also heard that the best way to overcome fear is to participate in the very activity that makes you afraid, so I decided to do just that.
We used to belong to a pool here in town and I was just fascinated at the way the young children, mine included, would run down to the diving board, take a few steps, and in an instant, jump right into eight feet of water and swim right off.
It looked so easy and I was bound and determined to learn to do the same thing, so I signed up for swimming lessons under the direction of Lee Greer. Now we all know what a great swimmer and instructor he was.
I don’t know what I was thinking, because somehow the lessons were not so easy for me. I remember once when he told us to go under the water, count to 10 and slowly ease back up and do the same thing again. I did this the first time and popped right back up. He said that was the fastest counting to 10 he had ever seen. My reply was that I counted by fives. I was determined to learn to swim so I could put the younger children to shame when I made a swan dive off that diving board.
Day after day dragged by, and day after day, I just could not seem to keep my head partially under the water. When I thought I had overcome my fears, my head went straight down in the water, and my feet floated up and I just knew that I would come unglued. I finally learned to dog paddle a little during the week. I was really glad Greer wasn’t giving out grades, because if he had, I would have surely been at the bottom of the class.
It still bothers me to this day that I never learned to swim, especially since I grew up practically on the banks of the Waccamaw River. I’m so glad that all of my children and grandchildren can swim. The one reason I won’t let my husband take me on a cruise is still the fear of deep water and the fact I might have to swim, however doubtful that might be.
So I guess I will just have to stick to the kiddie pools, or sit on the side of the pool dangling my feet in the water, pretending I’m just soaking up some rays. It is said that you are never too old to learn, but on some things, I would have to argue that point.
My friends, I hope if you have a fear, you will do a better job of overcoming it than I have at learning to swim. Oh, well, some of us can and some of us can’t, so until next time, I hope all of you much happiness mixed with many friends.
As always, may you have blessed days ahead.
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