Swim Lessons

I've been giving my kids swim lessons lately. I swam competitively in High School and although I was never very good, I can swim better than the average person and I know how to do the various strokes. I was also a Lifeguard as a teenager and taught a few swim lessons. So, I've become the default instructor, though I don't get to go swimming with the kids as often as my wife does. But when I can make it, it's pretty fun to spend some time with each child teaching them some basics.

I'm trying to teach them freestyle first. Three of them are pretty typical students. I explain how to do one part of the stroke, show them how it looks, have them practice it, grab their arms/legs/head and put their bodies through the motions of doing it, let them practice some more, and they get excited when they finally get the hang of it. My younger son, though, is a bit unique. Last week, I explained how he should move his arms, showed him the stroke above water, and told him it works together with the kicking he's already learned. I was just about to ask him to try the stroke while I hold him above the water when he said, "Ok, I think I can do that", jumped off the wall, and started swimming. He couldn't get very far because he hasn't figured out the breathing yet, but he looked pretty good and he moved pretty fast.

I was amazed. I probably shouldn't have been, but I wasn't expecting him to figure it out so fast. This is the same child who, at the age of three, watched his friend riding a bicycle for about 5 minutes, said "I think I can do that", hopped on, and rode around the rest of the afternoon without falling once. No training wheels. Never sat on a bicycle before in his life. Just jumped on and took off.

That boy just amazes me. I was never that coordinated. It will be fun to watch him as he grows up and participates in more sports. I'm guessing he'll do well in whatever sports he chooses.