Father's Day

Kayaking down the  Galien River.  

I hear you have learned how to swim!  Grandma Jeanne is impressed because swimming was never one of my  talents.  I took swimming classes when I was about your age and it was a requirement in several gym classes from grade school to academy.  

While most of my friends were like mermaids, I floundered around like a fish out of water, gasping, and hanging onto the edge of anything for dear life praying for time to pass quickly along with just praying I wouldn't drown, but all the while never revealing my fears.

In academy, thoroughly disgusted with my lack of  confidence and gracefulness in the water I enrolled in a synchronized swimming class.  Wikipedia describes:

"Synchronized swimming demands advanced water skills, and requires great strength, endurance, flexibility, grace, artistry and precise timing, as well as exceptional breath control when upside down underwater."   Most of which I did not have, except endurance and flexibility, and determination to learn this graceful art.

I did pass the class with an A but not because I had become graceful.  I believe much of it had to do with attendance, and the teacher's fear I would retake the class,  and because I was not an asset to the group recital.  While everyone else's long, slender legs with ballerina poses came up out of the water in perfect precision, I could barely get my ankles to show.  The end with pretty, smiling faces emerging from the water, I was blinking water out of my eyes, spitting water out of my mouth, and gasping for air (thank goodness for the music).  The main thing was I passed the class and was still "alive"!

I moved onto being talked into water skiing by friends who like synchronized swimming glided over the water with such ease, my fear was much less plus it required less time in the water.  Again, it was battle for life. Wiping out with water forced into every pour of my body with no sense of coordination to let go of the rope, even though everyone on the boat and on shore yelled at me to "let go of the rope"!  Eventually I did master being able to ski  down the river quite a ways and glide into the dock area. A much better experience, but certainly not something I looked forward to do.  Where am I going with this?

I enjoy kayaking, I look forward every year to get out on the water.  I love the feel of the exercise, the nature surrounding the trip, whether on Lake Michigan or Madron Lake .  This is as good as it gets for grandma when it comes to water sports.

So for Father's Day, grandpa Willard and I went kayaking :).