Well, I am doing it.  Finally, after 44-plus years on earth, I am venturing into the water.  I desperately want to learn to swim and Dr. Lance Davis, a family medicine doctor at Roper Saint Francis is committed to helping me learn this life-enriching skill.

Last summer our community was gripped with the heart-wrenching stories of children who drowned and the loved ones who could not save them.  Dr. D and I agreed though daunting I had to do what I was encouraging people to do from the anchor desk…learn life-saving water skills. Today at the Martin Luther King Junior pool on Jackson Street,  Dr. Davis was encouraging and firm. There was a camera over our shoulders but it did not detract from Dr.D’s message: Don’t panic, fill my lungs, make smooth arms movements, and keep my toes pointed

From a technical perspective Dr. Davis is an amazing doctor, educator, swimming instructor and friend, but what I value even most is his ability to empower me so that I can face this challenge.  I am learning a skill but what I am actually proving to my daughter is that throughout life we continue growing and gaining if we are willing.
I have a long way to go but Dr. D has me on a water-logged path to finding the strength within myself to push beyhond my fear so that I may experience that sense of exhiliration and accomplishment. Dr. D is teaching not only a specific swimming skill but, more importantly, a life skill of finding the strength within to push past adversity.