Swimsuit

 

   Thanks to the severe storm that swept through Hudson, the location of our  Toastmaster's summer party had to be changed. Two trees had fallen at Maha's house. One on part of the house and another on the deck. Her house was all right, but her gardens and deck were a mess and she didn't want to host a party until she had cleaned things up. Tosia offered to host it at her house. She would make pulled beef sandwiches and everyone could bring sides, desserts and appetizers. She also said that anyone wanting to take a dip in the pool should bring a suit and towel.

   I was tempted. I like to swim and I like pools. The challenge was that I hadn't worn a swimsuit in front of people I knew since I was in high school. The only times I put on a swimsuit are we are on vacation and I want to sit in the hot tub or swim in the hotel pool. Tosia said that she had two pool rules. The first was no peeing in the pool. The second was no body shaming including self body shaming. I wasn't sure if I would get in, but I made sure to set aside my swimsuit and towel just in case. 

   When we got to the party I changed into long black casual skirt with ribbons on it that I liked to wear to parties in the summer. When everyone went outside I went out too and I sat near the pool. Tosia jumped into the pool. Jade also slowly climbed in. I wanted to see if any more people would jump into the water. No one did.

   Jade and Tosia looked like they were having a very good time. The water looked cold, but not too cold. I was seriously tempted. Tosia asked me if I was going to jump in.  I told her I was tempted, but a little nervous. She asked me if I remembered her rules. I said yes. Then she said, "What are you waiting for?!" I told her I was going to change into my suit. 

   I grabbed my suit and towel and changed. I wrapped the towel around myself and went out to the pool. I was nervous. I felt self conscious about wearing my swimsuit around people I knew.  My suit is a two piece that covers the same areas as a one piece, with a short swim skirt attached. Still it was a lot more skin than I was used to showing people I know. I walked confidently to the pool, put my towel on a deck chair and climbed in. It was cool at first, but then the water felt really good. The one thing that I noticed was that it was no chlorine. The pool was a saltwater pool. Once I discovered this, I took off my glasses and set them in a safe place. Then I put my head under the water and swam a little bit. The water felt different than chlorine pools I've swam in. I even swam to the bottom and did an handstand. No one noticed and that was just fine. 

   The bottom of the pool was uneven and I used this fact to stretch my feet. I also grabbed one leg  at a time to do a dancer's pose in the water. It's not a pose I can do on land, but with the water supporting my weight I was able to do it. The stretch in my hip and shoulder felt really good.

   Jade was sitting on a rooster shaped flotation device that was floating to the far side of the pool. She had no way to get back to the other side without help so I pulled her back over. Tosia left the pool to check on the food. She returned and jumped in yelling "Cannonball!" as she jumped. I made sure to get back. We talked as we walked around the pool. She showed me an old sportscar that her husband was working on.

   I was getting hungry so I got out of the pool, dried off as best I could and wrapped the towel around me. I went into the house to fill a plate and brought it outside since I was still pretty wet. Once I finished eating I sampled a dessert someone had brought. Eventually I started to get cold. I grabbed my clothes and changed out of my suit. I put the wet suit and towel in the car.

  On the way home I noticed that my skin felt nice and soft, one nice thing about the saltwater pool. I was proud of myself for going into the water. No one made a single remark about how I looked. Maybe I should do more small brave things like this more often.