On the 8th February 2013 I was standing on the edge of water waiting to dive into a mile swim, the Mid Mar Mile, my first entry back into sports competitions in over 15 years.
On the 8th February 2014 I was standing on the edge of a pool waiting to dive into a 50 meter sprint to qualify for the Western Province Para Swimming Team.
Yes it was exactly a year, and so many things happened in that year and it all started with a small dream to swim a mile.
How possible is it to believe for a dream or desire in your heart... I have no idea but I tell myself it is worth the risk. Dreaming big is risking big. It is putting yourself out there and pursuing something that many will see as impossible. There is no guarantee of success or failure, there is no safety net to catch you if you fall but you know what it's ok to fall. I was chatting to a friend of mine the other day and she said as long as you falling forward and not backwards.
It's like me beginning to believe that I can reach my 47 seconds in the 50 meter freestyle swim in 4 weeks; I swam it in 53.70 seconds on Saturday and the Saturday before in 55.70 seconds, 2 weeks before that I was swimming it in 60 seconds.
I have no idea if I can do it, I haven't done it yet, and taking 7 seconds off a swim is huge. But we will just keep swimming, just keep swimming and believe that in the movie “Finding Nemo” Dory knew something about keeping on swimming no matter what.
The things you do to reach for a dream. This past weekend I had to swim in a junior league gala, I was swimming with kids between ages of 7 and 12. The weekend before that I was among teenagers. These were the only official races I could do at this time to get official times for myself to qualify for the Western Province Para Swimming Team.
I had to ignore my feelings of insecurity, stupidity, DIS ability, and age, because trust me you put all those feelings into me and it becomes a bit chaotic and at some point the only thing to really keep you sane is believing God has put you in the right place at the right time and put a dream in you that comes with being vulnerable and at risk. You know picking up a dream at the age of 34 is a bit late in some ways but I think age is just a number and doesn’t matter in the end anyway as long as I get to pursue my heart.
Here is the thing that I love about swimming....as soon as I dive into the water everything around me switches off and in the water it's just me, time and a dream.
Pursuing a dream is all about the process and the stepping stones of getting there. So I have hit some stepping stones. I get to swim for the Western Province Para Swimming Team on the 31st March and 1st April at a National Gala.
It's like me beginning to believe that I can reach my 47 seconds in the 50 meter freestyle swim in 4 weeks; I swam it in 53.70 seconds on Saturday and the Saturday before in 55.70 seconds, 2 weeks before that I was swimming it in 60 seconds.
I have no idea if I can do it, I haven't done it yet, and taking 7 seconds off a swim is huge. But we will just keep swimming, just keep swimming and believe that in the movie “Finding Nemo” Dory knew something about keeping on swimming no matter what.
The things you do to reach for a dream. This past weekend I had to swim in a junior league gala, I was swimming with kids between ages of 7 and 12. The weekend before that I was among teenagers. These were the only official races I could do at this time to get official times for myself to qualify for the Western Province Para Swimming Team.
I had to ignore my feelings of insecurity, stupidity, DIS ability, and age, because trust me you put all those feelings into me and it becomes a bit chaotic and at some point the only thing to really keep you sane is believing God has put you in the right place at the right time and put a dream in you that comes with being vulnerable and at risk. You know picking up a dream at the age of 34 is a bit late in some ways but I think age is just a number and doesn’t matter in the end anyway as long as I get to pursue my heart.
Here is the thing that I love about swimming....as soon as I dive into the water everything around me switches off and in the water it's just me, time and a dream.
Pursuing a dream is all about the process and the stepping stones of getting there. So I have hit some stepping stones. I get to swim for the Western Province Para Swimming Team on the 31st March and 1st April at a National Gala.
Para-swimming classification is based on a system in which functional criteria are assessed. Athletes who have different physical disabilities may compete in the same class so long as their functional impairments are similar. My disability category is S7. This profile
is designated for athletes with one leg and one arm amputation on opposite sides, double leg amputations or a paralysis of one arm and one leg on the same side. Moreover, swimmers with full control over arms and trunk and some leg function can compete in this class....
is designated for athletes with one leg and one arm amputation on opposite sides, double leg amputations or a paralysis of one arm and one leg on the same side. Moreover, swimmers with full control over arms and trunk and some leg function can compete in this class....
And I will be swimming the 50 meter freestyle and the 800 meter freestyle. The shortest and the longest two races!!
If you haven’t seen my little video clip of the past years journey
Here's a link to "DIS abled EN abled.mov" in my Dropbox:https://www.dropbox.com/s/wmzd
Otherwise I leave you with this
"when you have a dream or purpose in life, it keeps you going. and just as it's never to late to start fulfilling your dream ,its also never to early. don't look for other people to validate your dreams. if it feels right, just go for it."
Thank you to all for the support in what ever form it has come in!!
Catherine
