When I started thinking about writing this I thought it was going to be really easy and that I knew exactly what I wanted to say. It turns out that it is very hard to fit 11 years into one short page, but here goes.
At age 7, I was very indignant about the fact that I never wanted to join swim team. My parents and I had been members at Mount Vernon Park since I could walk. It was where I had learned to jump off the diving board into my dad’s outstretched arms, where I’d belly-flopped off of the high dive, where I’d played in the pool countless times with friends, and where I had camped out under the stars for the first time. My parents kept telling me that I would like swim team if I tried it, but to me the pool seemed like a sacred place that needed to remain untouched by instruction and routine.
Finally in 2008 I gave in to my parents. I don’t remember the first day of practice, but I remember the feeling of euphoria that accompanied being sucked in to my first real sport. I remember the jittery feeling as I sat in the car on the way to my first A-Meet. I remember bits and pieces of my first experience at All-Star Relays (and our 8 and under girls relay team of Grace Sylvester, Maddy Finn, Cassidy Bayer and me). I remember pulling ribbons out of my folder and feeling so happy, not because of the place that I had come in, but because of the color ribbons I had gotten.
My favorite memory is actually not that distant. My favorite memory is from Divisional Relays, 2018, which was held a mere few days ago at Lee Graham. The 24 hours leading up to this meet were hectic to say the least. I didn’t know that I was swimming until 9:30 the night before, and I was worried that (because I haven’t been on the relay this season) I would mess up the routine that the rest of the relay team had set for themselves. However, they welcomed me into the relay with open arms, got me hyped up before the race, and congratulated me and each other after we swam, having taken down a pool record in our freestyle relay. This is a small-scale example of what the entirety of the Mount Vernon Park swim team represents. We are a family of 275 kids. We embrace anyone that wants to rise to the challenge. We roll with changes, even when they take us by surprise. We are champions at sportsmanship and we thrive on the energy that our teammates create. We are a team.
I guess through writing all of these memories, I have come to two solid conclusions. The first is that for me, swim team is not solely about winning. In swimming, your top competitor is not necessarily the person swimming in the lane next to you. Your greatest competition is the person looking back at you when you stare down at the water after hearing “take your mark.” You strive to beat the person next to you but you also strive to conquer the bounds that you set for yourself. You don’t just reach the bar, you pass it. And if you don’t, then you try again.
My second takeaway and hope for future Gators is that you swim because you love it, not because your parents want you to or because you think it’s the “right” thing to do. Every time I dive into that water and my veins fill up with chlorine, my heart grows a little bit larger because of how much I love swimming and the people that come with it. I met some of my best friends, incredible coaches, inspiring little Gators and great parents while I have been a member of this team. It seems like my journey with the Gators is coming to an end, but a part of my heart will always belong here at Mount Vernon Park and with this team. Peace. Love. Gators.
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