Changing swim teams is NEVER easy. You build friendships among families and swimmers. That's why I love swimming as a sport. C has been swimming USA Swimming since she was eight years old. During this time we've met some of the greatest families. My very favorite thing about swimming is it's one of the few sports that you can spend an entire day, or two or three, with your child doing what they love to do. Another great thing is if you are bored, they will always have a volunteer job for you. Swimming needs a lot of support volunteers.
C just loves the water and USAS offered her the opportunity to swim longer distances and strokes that were her favorite. We spent almost a year with our first USAS team. Our current team would have been three years this July. After that much time with swim families they become just that swim families. We encourage each other's swimmers. We sit in the sun watching them swim back and forth. We volunteer together. We invest many hours in not only supporting our children, but also our teams.
When it came time to actually consider changing teams, it was hard... R was ready for C to leave the team in the fall and becoming more and more ready by the day. C began being ready after the posters. I was the holdout volunteer obligation, etc. I ask many questions about their program. At our last meet, the O mom and daughter came to see C and offer encouragement. They gave C some really good advice.. and me to of course!
C is so upset by her performance she wants to quit. Thankfully my friend was within reach she gave me some very wise words to share with her. I had to wait until just the right moment to talk with her not only about her accountability for her performance, but what kind of a solution can she find for herself. We arrive home quite deflated. I start communicating with the new teams coaches. We like the answers to our questions. The ball is in motion...
As a parent you never want your child to rush into anything, especially if you have a child that is impulsive. Kids like new things. New things are bright and shiny. New experiences always have a honeymoon period. So you really want things to be right. C had decided to wait until closer to the end of March, but I can see that she is clearly not doing well in her mental outlook on swim. I finally ask the new coach point blank what are "your personal" recommendations in this specific situation. I needed to know is it better to wait, come quickly, what? The coach gave me some really great advice and I took it.
C and I decided when she would go. We contacted the coach and I took her Tuesday night. Not only did she see her two favorite senior swimmers from her old team. One of them immediately jumped out of the water and gave her the biggest hug. C's smile was a mile wide. She was in love the trial night.. She ended up swimming a practice with them. C told me all of the things she loved about Coach C's style. "She's strict. She corrects you. She watches... closely." She went on to explain all the kids she met and how she new so many. They were all very nice to her. The energy coming from this child was contagious.
I made her go back to her old team to swim a practice and tell her coach. She didn't want to, but I made her. There were two reasons to go back. The first, swim a practice and make sure she wasn't overly excited about the new one. Second, she has to tell her coach and her team mates. I had earlier in the day have her write a thank you card for Coach B. We went back and forth about when. Should she before or after practice? I told her she could always come back if she changed her mind. I am so glad I made her go.. Coach B was amazing to her. He offered her encouragement and best wishes. His actions made such a difference. He was mature and professional. He couldn't have handled the situation any better. I wish I could say the same for how the head coach handled the departure of some of the senior swimmers.
The last two practices with C's new coach have been nothing short of FUN! She's having a great time. She's working hard and she's focused on her goals. She wants to make Coach B proud when he sees her at the next meet. She's confident and prideful again. She's bubbly and energetic again. We couldn't ask for a better result. But we still miss the days with Junior and our old team...
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