Now that I live 2500 miles away from home and didn't appreciate the pool in my own backyard, I never thought I'd miss swimming. I grew up being a river rat where water skiing, boating and doing black flips off the diving board happened every weekend. My dad literally had me in the pool just a few weeks after I was born and as soon as I could, my parents signed me up for swim lessons. The smell of the chlorine and the calming sound of the water is so inviting. Growing up in Southern California where pools were on every corner, it was easy to just grab your suit, hop the fence and spend the rest of your afternoon at your friends house hanging by the pool. Over the last few years I have become more aware of my love for the water and have realized that the relationship between the two of us is strangely my strongest relationship. As soon as I begin to step into a slightly chilled pool, I feel this surge of energy and I begin to smile, knowing that I’m in my happy place. The water gives me a sense of life and meaning and without it, I definitely would not be myself.
