Summer Fun Series: Swimming Pools

Going to swim at the local community swimming pools was a huge part of my life when we were growing up. During the summer, we'd spend almost every day at the pool. We'd meet friends, practice our fancy dives, and get frozen snickers bars from the snack bar that always smelled like french-fries. At the end of the day, our eyes would be bloodshot and our hair smelled of chlorine, but we'd be glowing with deep rich tans.

I could probably count on one hand the number of times we've been to a swimming pool in the last 5 years. There really is no excuse because the pool is less than 5 minutes from our house! So when our daughter begged to go to the pool one Sunday, what could we say?

We got there early before the crowd and had the whole place to ourselves. My daughter was thrilled! She flew down the slide over and over - we joined her a few times. What fun skidding at top speed then splashing uncontrollably in the water. She showed us her new tricks: cannonballs, backflips, front flips, touching the bottom of the deep end, the list goes on!

A few times I swam around on my own. There is just something about being weightless in the brilliant silence of the water, sun rays filtering through the ripples and bubbles, making fascinating patterns on the bottom. I've always loved to swim, I could stay in the water for hours. For me, it's the ultimate freedom.

In a few short hours, the pool began to attract more visitors and the noise level slowly started to rise. The screams, the laughter, and the splashing brought back so many memories of my childhood summers that I had to grin. It was absolute bliss. On a hot summer day, there is nothing better than a day at the pool, floating in crisp, cool water with not a care in the world!

SMILE...

Like the ripples that are created from a pebble dropped into a lake, it's amazing what one smile can do in this life. Not just the smile that I wear, that seems to lift my own spirits, but the smiles that I give to others, in the grocery store, at the mall, in the parking lot.

Have you ever noticed the complete change in demeanor of someone who smiles? It's like a weight has been lifted off their shoulders, like light that shines from their skin. Sometimes someone will come toward me with a scowl, a frown, they are so serious I wonder what on earth could be the matter. You smile at them and they smile back and suddenly the stranger becomes a friend. You see them in a totally different way. They are no longer mean and distant, but kind and understanding. The transformation is so interesting.

For the past few years I've really been working on trying to be a more open and friendly person. I find that it creates a more peaceful atmosphere around me and around others. I hold open the door for someone, I drive with patience and courtesy imagining that my friends and family are in the cars around me, I look a cashier in the eye and say thank you - and really mean it. I leave big tips.

I'd like to think that these small practices are having a ripple effect. I'd like to think that the woman I allowed to go in front of me at the store will feel a little warmth inside. That maybe it will carry over on the road while she's driving and prevent a car accident. Or the man I just waved into a parking spot when we came to it at the same time will lighten up just a little bit. That maybe he'll go home that night and have the urge to give his wife a hug.

We have enough problems in this world to contend with. If we work on being a little bit nicer to each other, I wonder what kind of wonderful place we could create.

So - that's my quest. Laugh more. Smile more. Stay calm. Try to understand instead of react.

Be the light I wish to see in this world.