One challenge at 4-H camp was to swim to deep water using the backstroke, tread water for a specified length of time and then swim back to shore. I was confident in my ability to tread water but the backstroke was new to me. I swam. . . and swam. . . and swam. I stopped to check my progress and found I was still in shallow water. Apparently one of my arms was so much stronger than the other that I had been swimming in circles and never did get to demonstrate my prowess at treading water.

My Uncle Joe taught me to water ski at age eleven. I wore a life preserver around my waist, held on tight, and prepared to fall. Being pulled along, shoulders tight, body tilted slightly back, and the rough bump of the warm wake beneath my skis felt exhilarating. As I advanced from starting in the water to sitting on the dock for takeoff, confidence grew to wave with one hand. I could zig zag across the wake of the boat and finally got brave enough to try going outside the wake, then dropping one ski. Practice builds confidence!