One of the biggest problems of writing this memoir
Was the unstoppable rate of daily change & improvement
That occurred literally all throughout this entire production

There is no stopping
The endless improvements
And the personal efficiencies
That come about from daily swim

To recap how my motivation did not lapse
Let me summarize some of the things
That were mentioned along the way

First I lost my lucrative corporate career
For not being enough of a company yes-man
Even though I was exactly all of that and more
That is how I got into coaching girls volleyball

After that I was a stay-home primary parent
That forced me to have several years
Out of the labor force altogether

During that time I became proficient
With my previous love of databases

Divorce and multiple deaths struck my family - I was reeling for years
Driven by the deepest desire which is to stay near my son
In a city where paying rent was implausible
I dedicated myself to living out of my car
With the help of a 24-hour gym
For showers, fitness & sanity

Despite my regular activity, by the age of 50
I found myself at the heaviest body weight
Of my entire lifetime as a slender athlete

This inspired in me - at deepest level
Toward reckoning of need for change
Necessity is the mother of invention

I rejected oppressive social policy
I took health into my own hands
I undertook a personal study
Of conducting informal liver cleanse
Matched with the new full body routine of daily swim
Two shoulder injuries and months off for shoulder rehabilitation ensued

The Covid sham/crisis did not deter or scare me toward doctors and assurances
Instead I became more resolved to keep matters of my own sickness and health
Under my own personal purview, leaning on the discomfort of conditioning
Rather than credentials of others and prescribed foreign substances

During this time I met at least 9 "swim angels" plus Erika and the black angel
It started with a 90-year old woman who flirted with me then forgot my name
She taught me how to put on a swim cap and studied my body with intent

Then to the woman who could no longer swim due to medical malaise

The actual swim instructor who had a picnic with me in the lobby
The double black belt martial artist of swim with emotional problems
The father of the woman who consulted in her 20s with swim instruction
The incredible double angel who could swim as fast as me at age 70
Because she was a lifelong athlete who trained with Olympic coach

All this time I dreamed of writing a swimming philosophy book
It had to be as good as the master work, "Zen in the Art of Archery"
Which seeks to bring bow, arrow, target and process into one with self

The topic - Zen in the Art of swimming Tiny Laps - in a pool at my gym

To bring final crescendo to this master work
I need to discuss the shape of my arms
As I swing around for each next catch
That arm swing - causes injury or not

It has changed a bit and taken different shapes during my past two years
The way it was earlier caused injury; I will just refer to the way it is now

I've been swimming at my ex-wife's pool lately
I only mention it because it's an HOA pool
It's more shallow than the pool at my gym

Due to the shallow nature of this semi-forbidden place
I was stubbing my fingers all the time
It was becoming a real problem

Somehow that made me modify my stroke
That mod gave me pause in my thinking

Imagine you're playing poker and you just won a huge pot
Now you have to pick up all the money on the table

So you start with your right hand
You wrap your whole right arm
Around all of your winnings
That is how it feels for me
To swim in shallow water
My arm makes "C" shape

Let's take the shallow water stroke back to the gym
Where the depth of the pool is no longer a problem

There is something about using that money-hug
It connects to the advice about swimming downhill
Let me provide another important and highly visual analogy

Let's now visually imagine you are seated in front of a large snow bank
Your task is to use your arms to make the snow bank half its present height
To do this, you'll use mittens which turn your arm into a digging shovel
You're not digging dirt from the ground - you're digging a snow bank

The snow bank is too tall for your snowblower
So you use your arm like Pac-man eating dots
It's like how Pac-Man closes his mouth

Your arm does a sweeping downward circular arc
The downward arc is like raking money vertically
The wrists are bent and your fingers point down
Coming around - fingers point toward your legs
The palms are pointed toward your body

I've inserted some dark angel pictures into this book

They are beautiful - yet I hesitate to use angel with scythe
The scythe however - that tool has that shape for a reason
That shape is needed to understand the swimming arm swing
The shape is a crescent moon but a scythe is a tool with purpose

The scythe harvest tool - is designed to quickly cut down crops of grain
The shape bears its mechanical function for agriculture, not just rock T-shirts
This same shape performs the same function in the catch of an effective arm swing

The irony about likening my arm swing
First to a poker grab - then to the emblem of a dark angel
Is all at once a reminder to keep health in within arm's reach
And the bad things that happen to our physical health if we don't

My arm swing shape has changed
My regular pool has partially changed
The distance I swim has gotten much less
My effort in swimming is way less and it's easier
My body has definite had a lot of positive changes

I'm not at the top end of the sizes available in the bathing suit
My fatigue is way less - I'm also doing yoga now on the swim day
It's not rare that I would also play tennis on the same day - three activities
On some days I have done swim, yoga, tennis and still coach my kid's soccer practice

At age 52 I let the incredible stamina and capacity of my body be it's own proof of health

The millennial generation often becomes very burdened by my sensible advice
To this I just say that I'm not here to assert my way or your way
I'm here to say long term health and happiness are elusive
Most of my joys begin first with nurturing my own body

By nurture I often mean, "conditioning"
I'm sorry if the speed of our society
Is prohibitive to finding the time

No one wants a preachy coach
In truth I'm not preachy at all
Except to say conditioning
Should not be seen as optional

Do what you want - I hope you find it
Let's talk again when you make 50
Or when you meet MoneyPenny
You'd better be ready already

That's not the day to start
See you on the flip side

Lesson Summary

Throughout the memoir, the author recounts a period of significant changes and transformations in their life. Some key points include:

• Transitioning from a lucrative corporate career to coaching girls' volleyball due to not conforming to company expectations.
• Becoming a stay-home primary parent, leading to years out of the labor force.
• Developing proficiency in databases during the time away from the workforce.
• Experiencing divorce and multiple family deaths, impacting them for years.
• Living out of their car in a city where rent was unaffordable, relying on a 24-hour gym for showers.
• Becoming motivated to make drastic lifestyle changes after reaching the heaviest weight of their life at 50.
• Rejecting reliance on traditional medicine and taking health into their own hands.

Additionally, the author shares encounters with various individuals during their swimming journey and dreams of writing a book about swimming philosophy. They reflect on their evolving swimming techniques, influenced by swimming in different pools, particularly a shallower pool causing them to modify their stroke. They liken the swimming arm swing to various analogies like a poker grab, the shape of a dark angel's scythe, and a snow bank being dug with mittens.

As the author reflects on their journey, they emphasize the importance of conditioning for health and happiness, noting the influence of millennial perspectives and providing advice for future wellness.