Back in 1992, I was in a crazy car accident.
A North American Van Lines tractor trailer side-swiped my
tinny Toyota Tercel on Rt. 4 in New Jersey, spinning my car around three times
in what seemed like a slow-motion roundup ride, my screams going from loud to
soft as the car careened and ended up backward on the median. Although my Tercel was totaled, I walked away
virtually unharmed, albeit in a stake of shock and picking the shards of glass
out of my hair.
It wasn’t until weeks later that my lower back started
hurting and thus started my trip through the land of chiropractors. Each chiropractor
seemed to practice his own special method.
One left me in a dark room positioned with various blocks under my back
and legs while music played. Another tied
me into all sorts of pretzels and then prescribed me with the powder form of
vitamin C and a charcoal supplement that made my poop black. I guess his theory was that the digestive
system was tied to spine health? Anyway,
nothing worked.
Fortunately, I was laid off from that highly stressful advertising
job that had me on the road driving our creative (for this fateful trip, the
new packaging for J&B scotch – and no, liquor was not involved in the accident!) to some
very uninspired clients.
And, just like that, I had plenty of time on my hands to
recover.
My friend Trish recommended that I try swimming. Although I spent my summers in camp where
every day involved a dreaded hour of swim instruction, I never made it past
advanced beginner. But, I did love the
water and my gym had an olympic size pool.
So, I decided to give swimming a go…
1 lap. Exhausted.
2 laps. Doubly exhausted.
10 laps. Help!
But after a few weeks, I found my rhythm AND my back started
feeling better! A miracle!
Now, years later, with ills that seem to be adding up daily
including a torn Achilles and continued lower back pain, I am hoping that
swimming will again be my cure-all. Even
more, I somehow believe it could be my physical and mental salvation.
It seems I am not alone.
According to Lynn Sherr, author of Swim:
Why We Love the Water, “Swimming stretches my body beyond earthly limits, helping to
soothe every ache and caress every muscle. But it is also an inward journey, a
time of quiet contemplation, when, encased in an element at once hostile and
familiar, I find myself at peace, able — and eager — to flex my mind, imagine
new possibilities, to work things out without the startling interruptions of
human voice or modern life. The silence is stunning.”
For
me, swimming feels like the best stretch ever. Like that of an infant waking up
from a deep sleep. Swimming makes me
feel young and thin – the water sculpting my body with each stroke. And like Lynn Sherr, swimming allows me to
think creatively and deeply, with no interruption, my body reaching for
Zen with every stroke.
Actually, I never gave up on swimming…I saw it as my summer
sport, believing that the only way to do it was outdoors, under a blue sky
(which is preferable). But this year my New Years resolution is to swim year
round. And, I am proud to say that even
though on Saturday morning it was a frigid 5 degrees, I pulled on my bathing
suit and ice-cold bathing cap and swam 32 invigorating, lovely laps. My shampoo and conditioner were both frozen,
but no matter. My passion for swimming
will not be undone.
That is, unless this new pain in my shoulder keeps me out of
the pool…ARGGHH…SPLASH!!!
