Wow, this is hard to write.
Once upon a time, my parents made the decision to become members at a local pool around the corner which had a beautiful pond, a colorful playground, a field, three pools, and tennis courts for their two children to explore. Little did three year old me know that it would become a home away from home for the next fifteen years.
When I was five years old I joined the Mount Vernon Park swim team which had practices in the morning and meets with hundreds of kids all swimming on Monday nights. Every morning I would wake up early and eagerly await the time that my mom would drive me to MVP. The big kids were there waiting for us so that we could start the fun activities on the hill to warm up while the other practice ended. The first day I immediately felt like I belonged.
Throughout the years, I grew as a swimmer and as a person with the help of my teammates, coaches, and family. I learned how to reach for goals and to persevere through my failures. And, even during the bad times, I had a loving environment to cheer me on and help me through them. I was able to swim at A meets where I worked for the good of the team scoring points, to attend the divisionals and All-Stars to represent our team, and to swim my heart out all season long. Some of my favorite memories are the cheers that we would belt before the meet, the comradery in and out of the pool, and the rewarding meal after all was said and done.
Although many of my favorite memories were in the pool, Mount Vernon Park as a community gave me so much more. Cookouts with family and friends, fishing, fun obstacle courses and dunk tanks on the 4th of July, a little shack to grab a snack or a drink when I took a break from my shenanigans, a job, a place to make s’ mores and stay up until the sunrise during campouts, a support system, and a love for swimming.
It’s funny because during this pandemic I wasn’t able to have a regular High School graduation experience and although I was upset, the pain from that was nothing compared to the pain I felt when I realized that I won't have a regular senior year on the MVP swim team. I had been looking forward to the costumes and swim meets, my senior night, the coaches’ retreat, a final camp out, and a slide show to finish off the season.
Although these things may not be possible this summer, I will always keep the memories that were made as I move on to the next chapter in my life. I guess what I’m trying to say is thank you to MVP and all of its members for being there to teach, love, and support me for the last fifteen years. I promise to make you proud.
Throughout the years, I grew as a swimmer and as a person with the help of my teammates, coaches, and family. I learned how to reach for goals and to persevere through my failures. And, even during the bad times, I had a loving environment to cheer me on and help me through them. I was able to swim at A meets where I worked for the good of the team scoring points, to attend the divisionals and All-Stars to represent our team, and to swim my heart out all season long. Some of my favorite memories are the cheers that we would belt before the meet, the comradery in and out of the pool, and the rewarding meal after all was said and done.
It’s funny because during this pandemic I wasn’t able to have a regular High School graduation experience and although I was upset, the pain from that was nothing compared to the pain I felt when I realized that I won't have a regular senior year on the MVP swim team. I had been looking forward to the costumes and swim meets, my senior night, the coaches’ retreat, a final camp out, and a slide show to finish off the season.
Although these things may not be possible this summer, I will always keep the memories that were made as I move on to the next chapter in my life. I guess what I’m trying to say is thank you to MVP and all of its members for being there to teach, love, and support me for the last fifteen years. I promise to make you proud.
Some of my favorite memories:
- Campouts
- Water polo
- The IM invitational
- All-stars
- Pancakes
- Throwing pies in the coaches’ faces
- Synchronized swimming
- Coaching and coaches’ retreat
- Team lunches
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