My father threw me in a river once and said, this is how you learn to swim. I don’t remember if I was scared. Only gliding through water so clear I could see everything the world might be made of.
The weightlessness thrilled me. And the cold that warmed me the longer I wore it. I glued my legs together with the wish for a fish tail and propelled my mermaid self through uncharted waters and forgot all the things I thought I knew.
A Wilderness of Words 
Nice. Often we learn because we have to, it is a reaction to an unplanned event. I learned to swim by testing the waters ever so slowly and then slowly moving into deeper water. Unfortunately, I learned a few other things the hard way – getting pushed in, following someone else, or jumping in on my own volition and then working hard to keep my head above water. Sometimes, the result is amazing and thrilling and other times it is a lesson just learned.
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I really wanted to swim, so I took to it quickly. I’m with you on the getting pushed in – I hated that. My father was insistent that we all learn because we always lived so close to a body of water. We are all strong swimmers as a consequence.
I don’t really swim anymore, though I always feel best living close to water. Lingering remnants of my secret mermaid life, perhaps.
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Simply beautiful, Mary. The pic and the prose.
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Thanks, Cathy. I went out and took the picture with my iPhone yesterday – a completely mediocre (at best) photo. I used various filters to get the effect I was thinking of in describing my vision of “lost.” God, I do love photo editing software!!
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Ooooh, I love those colors. And all the rest of it too. Gorgeous. 🙂
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Thanks, Jen. I was pleased with the colors, too. I’m glad you like them!
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so good…+++++++++++
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Thank you, bod! I appreciate that.
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That first-swim lesson is so huge and telling, somehow. I wonder if all firsts are like that? Yours shows a surprising fearlessness and observation.
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The gift of water. I still get lost in it.
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There is a thrill to your words that tames me into a great big smile. I so appreciate that.
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Thanks, Cayman. Glad I could return the favor of a smile, since your posts so often provide the same for me.
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Hello Mary. I admit am not a good swimmer–tried it twice but asked for help to immediately get out. I always have this feeling I’ll drown. And it has never stopped. Well, I can imagine you, on the other hand, doing excellent strokes. I agree with you father. Here, people close to water all know how to swim. For those who can’t, others often mock them. Again it’s for safety.
Good job with the prompt. And as always, your pics are beautiful.
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I think the key element to learning to swim is, as you say, the proximity of a body of water. When I grew up, we always lived very close to a lake or a river with a beach. If a parent didn’t want to worry about the safety of their children, the insisted on their children learning to swim. I must admit, though, that while I adored swimming as a child, it’s been quite a while since I have done it now.
Thanks for the compliment on my pics! I appreciate it.
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