Water/World Part 1

(from swimbikerunofkentucky.com)

 I've been thinking about life-gospel comparisons. I used to do it all the time, especially right before and after my full-time mission. But since reading this blog I've been thinking it'd be a good habit to get back in.

So I've started up swimming regularily again, and I LOVE IT. More about that another time. I'm training for a triathlon that's in the fall, so I've actually looked up some pointers on how to train, how to improve your stroke, etc. And I've been trying to put what I've learned into practise.

 As I'm swimming and swimming the other morning, it was one of those times where, although I truly do LOVE swimming, I kind of wanted to quit every five minutes. I swim for half an hour when I go, and kept looking at my watch hoping the half hour was up. Nope.

The two things I'm trying to work on most are keeping my elbows up and out of the water instead of swinging them to the side, and kicking from the hip. These don't come very naturally to me. I'm a pretty okay swimmer, but these are two things that get me time and time again. If I don't consciously work on them, I don't do them.

I had a friend in high school (okay, maybe I had a big crush on him) that I thought pretty highly of. He got good grades, he worked hard, he was really nice and funny. He loved his family and his neices/nephews. A year or so after we graduated he dated a girl who was LDS. He even got baptized. But after that it just all seemed like too much. He felt like he was a pretty good person and yet was told he needed to change. And that was too much, he was done with it. Fair enough, right?

Well, would any coach just let his player be? And just say "oh, you don't want to be faster/stronger/more skilled? That's okay" ?Heck no. If you have the opportunity to be better, and know it is possible with a little (or a lot) of time and effort involved, do you do it? YES!

The gospel of Jesus Christ betters us, but it demand improvement on  who and what we are. And sometimes, that really doesn't feel comfortable. Or often. Perhaps even overwhelming.

A famous swimmer told the secret of their success "You have to stroke when you don't want to stroke and kick when you don't want to kick." Along the same lines on becoming successful in our everyday life, "We have to work when we don't want to work, Exercise when we don't want to exercise, Study when we don't want to study, Practice when we don't want to practice."-Elder Holland.

So you can do it! (And it's worth it.)"Just keep swimming". - Dory