He took away my ability to float

So I swam instead

I was in the deep end of our family swimming pool,
clinging to a soccer ball for dear life.

Not swimming.
Just surviving.

The truth is… I’d been going to swimming lessons for weeks.
But I didn’t believe I could swim.

So I held on.
To the ball.
To the fear.
To the story that I needed something outside of me to stay afloat.

Then one day, my father stepped forward.
A…