Winning Isn't Everything

Aiden can't swim. I mean, he can swim a bit but he is really bad at it. The boy has no internal flotation devices. If sinking was an Olympic sport it would be gold, gold, gold all the way.

He is also terrified of deep water. He fell into the ocean and nearly drowned as a toddler and was saved by Fred. Fred is the gnome that lives in my head, he wears stripey socks, hobnailed boots and lederhossen. (Hey if Pinocchio can have a cricket, I can have a gnome.) Anyway, we were at the beach and Tony was looking after the kids. Aiden wandered off the edge of a submerged sandback and was face down thrashing. Fred booted me in the ear and made me look around. I got to him just in time.

Ever since that day, Aiden has been scared of deep water. If he can touch he is like a dolphin but take him deep and he will climb up your body and sit on your head screaming, "Get me back, get me back!" Every Friday during summer we go to the school pool and have a play. Each child is challenged to do something above their comfort zone to earn money. Ok, its bribery but it works. Caitie swam a length of the pool, Conor swam underwater and Aidens challenge was to jump into the pools deep end. I knew he could do it but he was terrified. It took him nearly two months to get up the nerve to do it. Yes, he did it and, on the day he did, I told him good job, nonchalantly turned away and wiped a tear away.

So, Aiden can't swim, okay?

Sooo, I got a phone call from the school asking me to bring his swimmers to school. Puzzled, I did it, only to find that the "swimming" was the schools tryout for the regional trials. I explained it to him, his teacher explained it to him and he was adamant he wanted to have a go. I shared a bemused glance with his teacher and went home.

That afternoon, Aiden came home, tears welling in his eyes and said, in a shaky voice, "I did one swim and they told me to hop outta the pool." I broke....

I told him that I was so proud of him for having a go, for trying, for just doing something so out of his comfort zone and I...was...proud...of him!

And do you know what I was most proud of (and I told him this) he figured out a way to get out of his classroom and into the pool on one of the hottest days of the year. He grinned... yep, got him figured....

Cheers,