Investments

This past week I've been teaching some awesome ladies that I work with at the YMCA how to swim. I got to talking with one of them about how I started swimming competitively at a really young age, and the crazy things my family did that revolved around me and Clayton's swimming. I let my mind drift back to those swimming days and thought about the investments that my swimming coaches made in my life.

I remember with vivid detail my coaches from when I was 5 to about 8. Coaches Aubrey, Dale, and Justin. They taught me to love swimming, work hard, and to be a part of a team. Some of the best memories of my life revolve around them and Texas Aquatics or the Aquadillos. I can talk for hours about them. I can remember specific races we traveled to, pools we swam at, cheers we did before races, and that Coach Dale got perms. They also took the time to teach me precise stroke technique, of which I am still very grateful.

The sad thing is that I can't tell you a single one of my high school coaches' names. But I can tell you what they taught me. Money talks, and if you don't win the race you don't matter. I guess it's no surprise I can't remember who they were, and that it took me a few years to step foot in a pool after high school.

It got me thinking about the impact you can have on a kid, even a really young one. It makes me so thankful that Back2Back invests in children of all ages and gives them such positive role models. Those coaches took the time to invest in my brother and I, and it's paying off 20 years later. I only hope that I can invest in the kids in Mexico the way my coaches invested in me when I was little.