December 25, 2007: My life without swimming? Hm, that's a hard life to think about. That's all I have known since I was seven years old. The one thing I spend and dedicate time to, count the minutes to everyday, and have sold my soul to ever since I jumped into the water. It's been that way for about six to seven years now.

December 27, 2007: How I HATE swimming! As I was swimming the other day, I was thinking to myself why do I even swim?! My relationship with swimming is best described as a love-hate relationship. I dread the feeling of waking up at 5:30 in the morning, body aching, and desperately calling out for me to go back to bed. Jumping in the cold water that slides up your body and suffocates you once you're in isn't so great. Then, looking at my planned 'death' and knowing I can't go back home, makes my stomach flip upside down and isn't my preference of choice or feeling. With all this, I still love swimming. I just don't know why'

December 28, 2007: The death wish of practice came true, I am truly dead! Once I had laid eyes on my butterfly set, my eyes filled with tears and a mixture of fear and pain rushed towards my body to trap themselves in. My body was shaking in reaction to the fear, but looked as if I was just cold from the water.

'Are you okay?' asked my team mate Sam as she placed her hand on my shoulder. A feel of comfort jolted through me as she went on. 'If it's the set, don't worry girl. I'm worried too. But I'll be stickin' it out with you.'

A warm friendly smile spread across her face and her eyes showed compassion with a sparkle of friendship in them. (You see, me being the youngest on my team and with her being one of the oldest, a junior, she didn't like me much. There was a lot of tension between us. That day though, having the same workout and feelings towards it, had somehow brought us closer together to become very good friends even to this day.)

December 25, 2008: Looking back, for one I can say a life without swimming isn't as hard or different as I thought it to be. It's more of a life unexpected for me, one I never would have thought of, or imagined. Yet with more time, it gets more manageable and easier. I have also realized why swimming meant so much to me and finally, most importantly, why I loved it. It had brought me my first and true friends that our relationships are like no other and can last for a lifetime. Struggling everyday with the same people, same problems, and everyone giving a hand to pick them off up the floor at all times, brought us all together. Memories of my childhood friends, neighborhood friends who we would play all night under a lamp post, and my life back five hundred some miles away that has made me into who I am today. Swimming will always have a part in my life no matter where I go or what I do. It's like a family. It is my family because you're stuck with them no matter what happens. They are one of the most important things in your life, and someone you'll always have and love, no matter what.