While it is undeniable that there is an incredible sense of team and camaraderie that comes from the atmosphere of swimming, it is fairly uncontested that the actual act of swimming can be quite lonely. It is perhaps with that in mind, that I have recently developed a new way to entertain my brain during my long swim sets where there is no one to talk to.
I typically pay minimal attention to my lane mates, noticing mostly just their unusual idiosyncrasies in swim stroke or breathing pattern but from time to time one of these particular strangers catch my attention and I find myself creating an elaborate back story for them. Here are some of my favorite characters and their fictionalized backstories that keep me company on my long swims…
“Catalina” the Social Butterfly Lifeguard
Catalina or ‘Caty’ as she is known by most of her friends, has always been described as vivacious by friends, teachers and even strangers ever since Kindergarten. Her wild curly hair can rarely be contained by her hair elastics, as if to serve as a visual metaphor for her bubbly and energetic personality. People treasure their friendships with her and strangers gravitate toward her, but what often goes unnoticed is how little she shares about herself to even her closest friends. Catalina loves people as much as she loves her secrecy. Perhaps that is why no one knows how much her own mother hates her, out of her own unfiltered jealousy and unfulfilled life. Now in eleventh grade, Catalina can start to picture her new life away from her mother and with her boyfriend of 2 years who is 10 years her senior (who unsurprisingly is a secret to her friends, teachers and of course, her mother).
“Lizzie” the ‘Overworked’ Lifeguard
Lizzie slouches into her tall lifeguard chair early in the morning, the sun barely breaking over the horizon. She rolls her eyes and aimlessly chews on the end of her long braid. Lizzie hates life guarding and is pretty sure that if any of the swimmers actually needed saving, her 90 lb waif-like frame would crumble in any lifesaving efforts. Plus, she didn’t get enough sleep. Lizzie closes her eyes and listens to the swimmers as they splash through their lanes. Life guarding is soooo lame. This was supposed to be a summer job to just prove to her dad and stepmom that she could be ‘responsible’ enough to have her own car. Lizzie grimaces at the deal her dad and her made at the start of last summer realizing now that this was clearly concocted by her stepmother. All the other wives her father married (and subsequently divorced) just let her do whatever. Plus they wanted to please her dad by getting along with Lizzie so they would buy her presents and take her shopping and totally try and be her friend. This one is different and makes Lizzie do chores (i seriously have to wash my own car!) and work (to pay for my own gas which is like pathologically unfair) and be socially responsible (eww). It is totally redic.
“Jeremy” the Merman
Jeremy had never been good at any sport or physical activity of any kind. Despite his average build and height he had awful hand-eye coordination, terrible rhythm and no endurance. Under normal circumstances this would probably not be that not worthy, but Jeremy was a sales rep for unique sporting equipment and often had to show how it worked, which was often pretty embarrassing. It was one fateful day that he was at a sales conference that he picked up a piece of sporting equipment that would change his life. It came in three distinct pieces. The molded foot piece, the support belt and the outer tail. Initially Jeremy and his friends laughed at the glittery mermaid tail. How are we supposed to sell this? How is this sporting equipment? After a few drinks, they headed to the hotel pool to each try it out. One by one each of Jeremy’s very athletic friends tried on the tail and tried a lap down the pool. The friends struggled with the tail and most gave up mid-swim, complaining about how stupid this tail is. By the time it was Jeremy’s turn he was apprehensive and not excited to embarrass himself again in a new sport. His friends had resumed drinking at the pool bar. Jeremy dove into the water and dolphin-kicked his way down the pool. He spun through the water and felt it move through his hair. He felt graceful and beautiful, like no sport or exercise had ever made him feel. He was one with the water. When he met his friends at the pool bar they laughed at him, ‘Dude, you looked like a dying fish.’ ‘No,’ thought Jeremy. I looked like a Merman.
“Mavis” the Survivor
‘Yes you can’ Mavis says to herself as she eases into the cool water. Her petite frame floats on the top of the water as she readies herself for her morning swim. She wets her short gray hair and secures ear plugs into her ears. As she pushes off the wall, she thinks about all the things she has had to push against. After her husband left her she worried if she would be happy again. ‘Yes you can’ she told herself. After she was diagnosed with cancer she wondered if she would be strong enough to go on. ‘Yes you can’ she persisted. At age 64, with cancer in remission, would she be strong enough to compete in an Iron Man? ‘Yes you can’ she insisted. And today, ‘yes you can’ she whispers and continues to swim.
“Maureen” the Former Dancer
Despite her age Maureen has always held onto a rigid workout and diet regime to stay in shape. At age 77, her tall and slender frame could still pass for that of a 40-year old, if it weren’t for those wrinkles…sigh. Maureen gracefully dips a toe into the water and begins her morning swim. The water is like her own time machine and with each fluid and graceful stroke she is transported to a different time and place. The time is 1961 and she is a mere girl in New York City. After years of ballet education in Washington DC, Paris, and San Francisco, she has arrived to take the stage for the audition that will earn her a spot into one of the top ballet companies in the world. At the audition she is taken aback to see so many dancers of her caliber, having spent so many years being the top elite dancer in her dance academy. She pins her number to her leotard and nervously takes her place on stage. She points her toe and begins her solo, packed with turns and leaps. She can tell she has the judges undivided attention and on the second to last leap, she makes a split decision to throw in a double pirouette for good measure, but her footing isn’t as secure as she thought it was. SNAP! The rest is always a blur. She is taken to a hospital. Broken leg in 3 places, broken knee cap, snapped ankle and crushed dreams. She sobs quietly to the doctor, who is a recent med school graduate. Soon they get married, have children and later grand children, and eventually retire to Florida. She rarely thinks about her dancing anymore, but in these morning swims she dances through the water where no one can see the tears she cries for her broken dream from long ago.
My Swim Around Key West 