In 2002, my dad, brother, sister and I bought a small
condo in Florida. Being faint-of-pocketbook, my quarter-share
took most of my retirement money, but I live by the principle
that one should follow her dreams while she’s still
awake.
Florida has captured my heart. No matter how many times
I make the trip, I am thrilled to arrive in sun, sand,
sea, surf and swimming pool country. The large condo pool
is next to the Intercostal waterway, one street away from
the Gulf of Mexico. Every day I swim. Sometimes I swim
two or three times a day. I’m often in the water
for an hour-and-a-half or two hours at a time, swimming
leisurely laps. My goal is 30 lengths or 15 laps per session.
Sometimes I double that.
The problem with swimming laps is keeping track. My mind
wanders. Oh, look, there’s a dolphin jumping out
of the Intercostal! Or three or four condo friends jump
in the pool to cool off and we gab each time I reach the
shallow end. Or perhaps a pelican, seagull, heron or egret
swoops by to my delight when I’m doing the backstroke
and I lose track of my lap count.
The solution came one day when I was feeling especially
joyful about being in that pool under a robin egg blue
sky on a glorious 80-degree Florida day. I started thanking
God for all my blessings that had significance to the
number of lap I was on.
ONE: One God who gave me one life. Side stroke,
breaststroke, crawl. I praise God for granting me so many
blessings. Me, a single parent who marches through life
as one woman, not as a couple. Thank you, Lord, for giving
me life.
TWO: Two homes. Thanks, Lord, that my
brother, sister, their families, my folks and I can make
a joint-owner vacation condo work so happily for all of
us. Two homes, one up north, one down south. It doesn’t
get any better than that, Lord.
THREE: Three part-time freelance jobs,
instead of one monumental stressful one. I write, I speak,
I paint jars. Lots of freedom. Breast stroke, frog kick.
Thank you, Lord, for giving me the ability to do this
work and to love my three jobs so much.
FOUR: Four children, two daughters, two
sons. I think about Jeanne’s recent marriage and
move to California; Julia’s struggles as a single
parent; Michael’s busy life with the university
band and his growing family; and Andrew’s determination
to finish college while working his dream job for ESPN
sports.
FIVE: One day in the pool I recalled
the five pair of sandals in my condo closet. Wow, Lord,
thank you for the variety of footwear you have blessed
me with. The next day as I did the side stroke up the
pool and down, I praised God for a tasty five-bean salad
recipe I made and for the five friends who ate it.
SIX: Six grandchildren. Three blondes,
three redheads. Hailey, Casey, Riley, Hannah, Zachary
and Chloe. I love lap number six best. Imagine the fun
of thinking about the antics of six little people who
are tied so tightly to your heartstrings that sometimes
you think you’ll just burst from happiness.
SEVEN: The seven seas. I recall all the
wonderful places I’ve swam. Atlantic Ocean, Pacific
Ocean, the aqua blue Caribbean, Gulf of Mexico, the warm
waters off Kauai, Oahu, and the big island of Hawaii.
Thank you for water, Lord.
EIGHT: One time when I was on lap number
eight I started thinking about “figure eights”
in ice-skating. I hadn’t ice-skated for years and
never could do a figure eight, but I still count my blessings
for all the fun winter sports I enjoyed in my youth up
north.
NINE: “Nine lives,” the number
cats have. Often when I’m in Florida I get to take
care of my friend’s cats, Bubba and Boomer. I’m
always happy when I get cat duty so the “boys”
can keep me company. Lord, give Bubba and Boomer at least
nine lives.
TEN: This is the place in my lap swimming
where I examine my conscience. The Ten Commandments come
in handy for this one. I run through them all trying to
decide if I’ve blown it and whether or not I need
to apologize to anyone for anything.
Every day I get out of that pool a new person …
blessings counted, prayers said, conscience examined,
life evaluated, attitude adjusted, and exercise completed.
Jump in. The water’s perfect.
(Lorenz shares her experiences in books, articles,
stories, essays, devotionals and columns all over the
country. E-mail her at <patricialorenz@juno.com>.) |
