Things Aren't Always Easy But Then There Are Rubber Frogs

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There’s a fellow at my local pool, in his early to mid-twenties, who’s quite a swimmer. But more so, he’s a decorator extraordinaire.

He comes to swim with his grandfather in tow each time. The grandfather sits on the bench closest to his grandson’s lap lane and monitors in silence.

Before each swim, this twenty-something goes through a ritual without fail. At the end of his lane, he sets down a plastic zippered tote that carries 10–20 plastic gnome figurines. He gets in the water, opens the tote, and proceeds to line up one gnome after another in perfection. Now he’s ready to swim. And now the gnomes have a front-row seat to what comes next — the wild rumpus of their owner’s rocket-propelled splashy swim.

The grandfather is a regular presence for his grandson. He seems respectful and kind, with a clear devotion to family. Sometimes the grandson hollers at the top of his lungs at the vaulted ceiling in an effort to calm himself, and his grandfather sits nearby unruffled and aware.

The young man will probably need caretaking of some kind throughout his life. For now, his grandfather has pool duty.

I didn’t shy away from the gnomes when I first saw them. I understood their potential role for this fellow. Instead, I thought, what a great idea. Why not make our small patch of the world friendlier? Or more fun. Or less scary. Or whatever it is gnomes — or any act of self-care — will do for you.

The weeks wore on, and I found myself walking into the huge pool area hoping to see the famous gnomes. If they were there standing in their line, I’d try to nab a lap lane nearest to them. I wanted to be close to the little plastic dudes and their owner. To me, they were an indication of authenticity. I’ll choose that for my neighbor.

Then it occurred to me — what if got my own figurines, lined them up at the end of my lane, and used them as an invitation to the young man to become friends? Not knowing a thing about him except what I observed, I didn’t know if my figurines would bother him or intrigue him. I didn’t know what friendship would look like to him. If it meant a curious tip of the eyebrow at my figurines, I’d be thrilled with that. Or maybe it was risky.

I mulled over the idea for a bit until one day I was groping for straws trying to find something, anything, to help make it easier to fall in love with swimming. The love is growing, I can feel it, but what else could I employ?

Then I remembered the figurines. Suddenly I saw them not in terms of someone else’s gnome-populated swim, but in terms of my own. They might legitimately jazz up the end of my gray-toned lap lane in the gray-toned pool area — with my gray-toned attitude.

But can 58-year-olds justifiably decorate their lap lanes with colorful toy creatures to give themselves a little mental lift?

As far as I know, they can’t. Until the other day when I did.

I went to Walmart to harvest whatever plastic toy I could find that looked both cheerful and absurd enough to be funny. I found stretchy, colorful frogs and grabbed the only three left. Then I set them up at the end of my lane and proceeded to swim in delight because — what the heck — you’ve got to live life.

The rubber frogs sat there and didn't hop away. They knew they were part of my team. They were whimsy livening up the ho-hum. Maybe because I was a faster swimmer than the folks nearby, no one came up to me and told me I was nuts. Or maybe the future for that pool is a huge wave of toy decor.

The gnome owner hasn’t been around lately, so he hasn’t seen my new frogs. I’m hopeful the introduction will go well. In the meantime, I continue my project to adopt swimming into my daily assumptions. There has been clear progress. I’ve been sticking to the commitment. The data indicates rubbery frogs help. If anything, my space looks fabulous — much better than the dull lap lanes down the line.

If you’ve got gray patches, need some safety buddies, or seek a giggle, my best advice is to consider stretchy frogs. Gnomes work, too.

Photo of author's team