swimming

Jack swam. Swam. Like: face underwater (NOT holding his nose), kicking his feet, moving through the water, swimming.

He had a breakthrough at swim class last night. He went underwater (all on his own) and I held my breath with him from the side as his teacher guided him towards the edge.

And when he came up out of the water, I don’t know  who had a bigger smile on their face: me or him. We both looked like deliriously happy 4 year olds…I guess we both were at that moment.

I’ve always been proud of Jack. Always. The way he takes care of his sister, or helps someone, or listens to a grown-up, or says his prayers, or sings in the Christmas program…hell, even if he does something as seemingly miniscule as picking out his clothes. But this…this was different.

I watched, as week after week, Jack came closer to overcoming his apprehension about the water. I actually saw him learn. I watched as he let go of his fears. He decided to put his face in the water all on his own, and he realized that he was okay...that he could do this on his own. 

It was unbelievable to see. All night I kept saying, “I can’t believe he did that! I can’t believe YOU did that, Jack!”…the excitement just kept coming back to me again.

He’s graduating from a tadpole to a goldfish (even though I’m pretty sure that genetically, the next step up from a tadpole is a tadpole with a tail, according to a Curious George book, but whatever). He’s excited that he “beat the level!”. I’m excited to see what he’ll learn next.

It’s was one of the best things in the world to watch him discover, learn, overcome, and experience. And to think: there’s SO many more challenges in life waiting for him. I can’t wait!