Well, Coltober did its work of revitalizing my daily swimming but not daily blogging! I am struck by how difficult it is to blog every day (or ever) and reminded anew that the greater accomplishment of my year of swimming was not the fact that I managed a daily swim, but that I actually wrote… Read More Coldtober Days 2-4
Time is hurtling forward and somehow it’s October again. As I did last year, I’m participating in Coldtober this month. Every October the Irish mental health organization, Helplink, puts on a daily cold water swim challenge called Coldtober to raise money and awareness for mental health. Last year, it was a no-brainer for me to participate–I… Read More Coldtober Day #1
Now that summer is nearly over for me, I’m finally getting around to posting about my beautiful swimming (and other adventuring) trips these last two months. In early June I went to Ireland where, within my first hour of landing at the Dublin Airport, I was swimming in the sea. From that moment until the… Read More Magical Ireland
My diligence in keeping up with this blog is seriously lacking. I can’t believe it’s been three months since I last posted. I think about it a lot for whatever that’s worth. And I miss it. I miss the way that knowing I was going to write a blog post made me experience my daily… Read More Spring Swimming
When I woke up to frost on all the windows, I did not want to swim. I made my tea and wrote in my journal and thought, “I won’t go unless someone else instigates it.” Five minutes later, my phone buzzed and a text from Angie said she’d pick me up in fifteen minutes. By… Read More A Very Cold Morning
Sunday was another lovely sunny day with a big crowd at the Bulb, which still felt like a welcome sight after all of the rain. Brown, murky water greeted us again, but I tried to pretend not to notice. The temperature was 51, the air slightly warmer than it had been the day before, but… Read More Sickness and Health (Week 4 in Swimming)
Week three began in Pt. Reyes at my gorgeous writing retreat. It rained and rained and I cozied up in my little writing hut and luxuriated in time and creativity. When we lost power, I snuggled by the fire with books and my journal and I slept more than I have for years. I felt… Read More (Im)Patience (Week 3 in Swimming)
January 8 (Sun)—It was a small crowd for a Sunday; just a few of us stealing in a swim between storms. It raged last night and is set to do so again tonight, so this morning we plunged in. The water was murky below and probably pretty polluted, but it looked beautiful! Calm, with ribbons… Read More Storms (Week 2 in Swimming)
The weirdest thing about January 1st was not coming back from my swim and thinking about my blog. At first, it was freeing: I don’t have to write about it! I don’t have to take pictures! But then it became disconcerting. Chronically my daily swimming has come to feel like my job; not doing it… Read More Adjusting (Week 1)
Today, my swim friends threw me a party in celebration of my year of swimming and it was a joyful, soul-nourishing experience. Swimming every day in 2022 brought me so many gifts, but if this day had been the only one, it would have been worth it. How rare it is to be so fully… Read More Celebrating