I chose to write about my sister again because my first article meant a lot to the people who knew Daisy and my family.
Daisy changed a lot of people's lives and not just the ones that met her, she changed our country as a whole. Her death impacted many people and how they viewed swimming pools and just kids being around water in general. People were scared and hurting for our family, which was understandable considering the circumstances our family was having to deal with.
Instead of just dealing with it, our family was given the opportunity to cope with her death and begin to accept it and grow, which is what we all wanted.
The dolphins swim team was the first opportunity we had to cope. We still lived in the same house where Daisy drowned, but the pool would never be the same. We discovered the dolphins swim team from a family on my softball team, the Martin Family. They talked to my mom about what it involved and my sister Cassidy started the next season. I waited because I was playing softball and always believed it would be my sport, even though I wasn't really all that great.
Cassidy fit in well with the team and began building a relationship with the teammates and I became the manager and was given the nickname Smiley. My coach, Kevin Covington, quickly became someone who I would forever look up to and he was the one who started the smiley trend. He pushed me to join the team and of course, I did. Being a part of a swim team and having friends that turned quickly into family helped tremendously with dealing with the loss of my sister.
We started competing and traveling to different towns and building relationships with other teams. I was happy, but ultimately still believed I was a ball player not a swimmer by any mean sports. Eventually, I gave up on my favorite game in the eighth grade and began truly focusing on swimming. I won medals and trained day in and day with the dolphins and eventually the Gaffney High team. With the training, of course, came the wanting to quit and hating the sport. It comes with everything that is hard. I was pushed to keep swimming by my dad, who was there at every swim meet as an official and coach. I was pushed to stop wanting to quit and just enjoy the hard work and competition; and that ultimately led to me loving the sport.
I was asked multiple times why my family chose swimming even though Daisy drowned. We never had an honest answer, but over the years I've learned multiple things from swimming and real life.
1: If you got in a car wreck and someone you loved died, would you never ride in a car again?
No, of course, you would because you can't walk everywhere. You can't be afraid just because something bad happened in that one moment. You have to learn to forget and never let that one thing scare you or you'll live your life walking on LEGOS.
2: People cope in different ways.
It took me ten years to beat depression and finally be happy. It takes some people a life time and others just a couple months. People do drugs, cry, run off, create a new identity, find a hobby, or like me; I just to swim.
3: People will be there for you undoubtedly, you just have to open up.
There will always be someone there to help and you never have to worry about having someone or something. Swimming was my something. It gave me hope that I could survive this awful time in my life.
Swimming gave me hope when I was lost. Swimming gave me something to hang onto when I was drowning. Swimming gave me an easier way to cope with the death of my bestfriend.
I chose to swim after the death of my sister and I will never regret a swim meet, practice, workout, medal, or whatever because it gave me hope when all was lost. Swimming was and is my safe haven.
