Tips on safety and fun in the water

Never underestimate what an important thing swimming can become in your child’s life. Water provides great exercise, relaxation, escape - and instant fun.

When I was a kid, we signed up for swimming lessons at Tunkhannock High School. The pool broke, and to our delight the lessons were moved to our backyard pool!

But it was not fun for everyone. My friend Charlie frequently had to “go to the bathroom” and there he would stay - until his mother retrieved him.

He later decided he wanted to talk with my Mom. So, at 5 years old, he sat her down on the sunny steps of a dry wooden porch - far away from the pool - and told her: “Now, Lou Ann, why did you have to go and build this dumb old pool?” “What do you mean, Charlie?” my mother said. “Well, if you didn’t build this dumb old pool then I wouldn’t have to learn how to swim!” The rest of the kids were having a great time laughing, splashing around and - in time - learning how to swim.

In the end, even Charlie learned to love the water.

My love of swimming started that summer and when we moved from the country to the city - the backyard pool was the only place I could wander. As a young teenager, there were days I would put on a mask and earplugs and be completely free of the restraints of the (increasingly bewildering) real world, and swim until shimmering bubbles reflected the pool-light well into the night.

I have never spent much time in natural bodies of water, but one September my friend Ann Marie invited me to join her on her favorite pristine lake.

I bragged about how well I could swim, but when I saw her, at 62 years of age, perfectly in shape in a wet-suit, I felt vaguely intimidated. I shook it off - after all - we’re just gonna just splash around near a dock! But that’s not how lake girls swim.

After a certain amount of graceless wiggling, I managed to don a wet-suit. So, with a boogie board tied to us, off we went. Eventually, I looked back and said: “Are we gonna turn around?” She answered: “Not until we touch the lilies on the other side.” “Wait... you mean... the other side... OF THE LAKE?” It seemed miles away.

So, after all my bragging I became tired, crampy and I longed to stop and float on the boogie board. “But we don’t have to stop,” Ann Marie said, “Hang on to my boogie board and I will pull you!” So there I was, the proud swimmer, being yanked across the lake by a woman over 30 years older than I.

After working out a bit, I tried it again the next summer. Suspended in such a large body of water - with only clouds above and nothing underneath - it’s like flying! And being used to chlorinated water, I was shocked at how soft my hair and skin felt. Yet another of swimming’s great rewards had been given me. Never will I let a summer go by without the experience of freedom and joy that the water brings.

A Few Water Safety Tips

• Always supervise children. Even if your children are strong swimmers, accidents happen, and in a water environment, a minor accident can become serious or even fatal very quickly - often with very little warning and no noise.
• Do not allow non-swimming children near the pool.
• Make sure that all youngsters above the age of 4 attend a certified swimming class.
• Always have high fences and locks around your pool.
• Always be sure the pool cover is completely off the pool when in use, and be sure everyone knows how walking on the cover is an easy way to get trapped and drown.
• Make sure that there is always a life-saving flotation device handy near the pool. Contact your local High School for information about swimming classes in your area.