Swim, Baby, Swim
Did you ever take lessons to learn how to swim?
I did, at the YMCA, and I still remember them,
I was probably seven years old, and it was an indoor pool,
During the winter, while we were still in school,
We were required to wear bathing caps back then,
We learned to tread water and to dive in,
We were taught to go to the bottom to retrieve a penny,
Holding our breath until we didn’t have any,
It seemed like miles to the bottom, and ear pressure was
real,
Accomplishing these tasks was a really big deal,
We learned all the swim strokes after a while:
Breaststroke, back stroke, side stroke, and freestyle,
We were taught all of the kicking techniques:
Frog kicks, scissor kicks, flutter kicks, with constructive
critiques,
Our lessons were thorough; we were very well-trained,
That’s a nice little swim down memory lane,
Nearly six decades later, I watch my granddaughter learn,
She is only 8 months old and it’s hard to discern,
How a small baby like that can have no fear,
She loves the water and does not shed a tear,
She is learning to float, to go under and recover,
What a wonderful skill for a baby to discover!
Tammy Harvey
3/2/2024
😘💕😘
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