If I tell you a story about someone who learned how to swim in her sixties and still swims 1000 metres in the pool everyday, what would you think about her? Is she great? Yes, and this great woman is my mom.
When I was young, my mom taught me that to be successful you must always do your best and never give up. That was what she did as a role model for me and my sister. When she retired from a senior accountant position, she found new interests in reading and playing ping-pong. One day, my aunt told my mom that swimming is good for controlling high-blood pressure; then she decided to learn how to swim and she believed that she could be a good swimmer.
It was so hard for her to learn these new athletic skills especially, exchanging breath and treading water. At the beginning of her swimming instruction, she often swallowed the pool water and would sometimes choke on the water. She was never afraid of that, if she swallowed too much water at one time, she said to my dad that she couldn’t drink tea any more because she was full and smiled. Sometimes she followed my aunt’s swimming instruction and worked on it; and other times she just stood beside the pool to watch how others swam. Then she began practicing over and over again to improve her physical actions, after many attempts, she finally announced with pride to her family “I learned swimming in my sixties.”
Reba McEntire once said “To succeed in life, you need three things: a wishbone, a backbone and a funny bone.” In other words, follow your dreams, stay persistent, and don't lose your sense of humor. With the combination of confidence, courage, intestinal fortitude, and a little bit of a sense of humor, my mom became a good swimmer and got healthier. She demonstrated to me that one could be very successful even in their retired life.
Written by: Joanna H.