G’s fearless around the water when we take him swimming (at the pool OR at the ocean…now there’s a way to stress a mother’s heart!) It was time to channel his high energy into definite swim strokes and aquatic education. *grin*

For the past 8 days, he’s been taking swim lessons at our local swim center. It’s the same pool where Ken and I took lessons. Talk about a trip down memory lane.

On the first day of class, it was apparent that our boisterous little “fish” was quite shy and uneasy. I knew he wasn’t “in the moment” by his sitting position and facial expression.

We talked with him at length after class the first couple of days to find out what he was nervous about. Turns out he’s not quite as fearful of the water itself as he is the drain and filters in the pool. (The exit ladder happens to be directly beside one of those filters.)

Yet as the days continued, I began to see my little boy blossom and gain bravery. He made friends with his fun-loving teacher and “talked his way through” his uncertainties. Watching him move from one challenging exercise to the next makes my heart sing!

Rainey likes to sit on the sidelines with me, watching G in action every one of the 45 minutes each morning. She’s so fond of her big brother — a huge cheerleader.

I have seen my Little G grow up exponentially in just eight days. I have watched him learn how to manage his worries, step up to the front line (edge of the pool in this case) and “jump right in.” I have seen the compassion and good citizenship of other people as so many of them clapped, cheered, and coached him from the side, yelling at him to “go, go, go” even though he’s not their child! I have witnessed a small transformation within G….and learned quite a few lessons myself.

(And I’m not just talking about how to take off one’s pants in the water and fashion them into a functioning flotation device. Cause I learned how to do that yesterday, too.)