Swimming to Joy; or: How the Water Saved Me
On inherited traumas and joys in an immigrant family, and swimming as an antidote to despair.
La Bâtard
How did it leave? One day I put my head in the water, bracing myself against the fear, and it wasn’t there. I was still a child, but older; then, suddenly, I wasn’t a child anymore. I swam into a tougher, older body that wasn’t afraid, and I lost something else with my fear, though I couldn’t say quite what I lost.
keep your head flat! Flat head, flat head!How do you not get water in your ear?
You do. It just comes out again.
not that bad.
we can fly
I don’t get itWhat don’t you get?
is
Shruti Swamy lives and writes in San Francisco. She's still swimming.
shrutiswamy.com
Enter your email address to receive notifications for author Shruti Swamy
Success!
Confirmation link sent to your email to add you to notification list for author Shruti Swamy
More in this series
Shooting in the Dark
“Basketball gave me an identity completely severed from my family.”
Looking for a Reflection as the Only Asian Actor in a Production of ‘Mulan’
I felt humiliated singing a song about honor when I could only feel shame. As I stood in yellowface, I had finally fulfilled my quest to become white.