I had a great fear of swimming for many years. Though I went to an excellent school, PT masters can often be quite thoughtless and all brawn sometimes makes for little brain. We were all just about 11-12 year olds. One fine day he decided it was time we made it to the bigger, deeper pool and that we had to give up the kiddie pool. And his method was to take us to the high diving board and push us over.
Fortunately or not, I had a psychiatrist as dad and he made such a fuss that I was excused from PT. Actually, I wish the matter had been handled more delicately as I do feel PT is great for all humans. However, that experience left me convinced that I would never swim.
And so it was only in my 30s that I finally did learn. My husband is from Kerala and in those days his ancestral home still existed. Many homes in Kerala had their own pond. It was in this natural pond and wearing their traditional dress(mundu and veshti) that I learned to swim along with my son who was a little boy at that time.
I learned in just one day, including floating on my back and since then I'm a pool addict. I just love to get into water-so much so that sometimes I get into hot water!
Besides the excellence of my husband's coaching, I do feel the meditations taught to me by my father also helped. At that time I used to do a panchabhoota meditation regularly. this is what I used to do: think of the earth and pray to walk lightly on Her and give thanks, etc. For water, I used to imagine floating in the ocean. This is what helped, I think. There is some scientific evidence according to some reports for example: https://bettermovement.org/2010/moving-better-by-just-thinking-about-it/
After those years, we managed to get access to a swimming pool in Qutub Hotel in Delhi in the mid 80s. The water was so chlorinated that one gentleman there once told me that someone got in with their costume and came out without it! Nothing that drastic happened but I had a lovely costume sent to me by my sis in the UK and after sometime it turned from nice violet and green and all to skin colour!
Our next access to a pool was in Jal Vayu Towers in Gurgaon. I do feel we wasted money there because we had to pay though we lived there and we paid for the 3 of us: me, hubby and son. Hubby was always late back from work. Son was at the age where he didn't want to do anything the same as his parents. It's not age so much as the "wonderful" American TV serials and books and such which created an artificial teen angst for so many.
After that I enjoyed the pool in Westin, Bali, which was nice but rather lonely as I was alone.
The best memories are of our time in the gym at Midvalley, Malaysia, which had a rooftop pool. It was sheer bliss, especially since there was also a jacuzzi near the pool. And a sauna and steam room. Bliss!
But the nothing was quite as good as enjoying the sea with my son in Goa recently. The sea is incredible fun!
Just as one thinks one has seen the best, better always comes along if your eyes are open to blessings. Today we live in an apartment complex with a small cute swimming pool surrounded by colourful bougainvillea. Almost every evening hubby and I rush to have a few minutes in the water. A little bit of swimming, a bit of floating on the back meditation and lots of joyful interaction with the young people who also use the pool.
Any movement is better than none for health and figure. Swimming is great for many people with health issues. I feel it would be a blessing especially for the elderly to overcome their shyness and fears and to get into a pool if they have access.
Some are hell bent on making everything "meaningful" and getting "results"-they swim up and down for ages! Maybe they get stamina and lose weight but unless one learns to enjoy the seconds and nature and be grateful, nothing will bring health. It may, of course, bring wealth!
