"My life has been a tapestry of rich and royal hue An everlasting vision, of the ever changing view. A wondrous woven magic in bits of blue and gold A tapestry to feel and see, impossible to hold." (Carole King)
The Formalities
I am 47, a mom of a 25 year old son, Robin.
I had an illness, at age 7, which has left me as spastic diaplegic, which just means I am blond and I walk funny. It also means I am unable to use my legs for swimming.
The Fun Stuff
I decided to do my first Robben Island swim in May 2004, age 42.
That decision changed my life and launched me on a journey I could never have dreamed of. My first swim was a giant leap of faith for me. I did not doubt that I could do the 7km from Robben Island to Blouberg but, neither was I so sure.
Two weeks before the swim, Robin said, “Mom, you had better finish this thing. I am not sitting with your little broken heart."
The Beginning
My story starts on Sunday the 3 October 2003, laying on my bed, in a half awake half asleep state. I had spent the previous three years gym training with a personal trainer; I had a good strong body. But something was missing. In August 2002 I had taken on one of those 3 month “build your best body yet” type challenges and although the gym training was old hat to me, I had to develop my own cardio programme, as the one advocated by this challenge used cycling and running both of which were out of the question for me. At the time I could swim 600m in the gym pool. I was shy and did not speak to people. I would slip out the change room door and hope no-one saw me. About 2 weeks into the challenge, I set myself the goal to complete a 3000m swim on the last Sunday of my challenge. During the week I would do two hard sessions of swimming and then Sunday’s I would add 250m. So 600m became 850m then 1050m and so on and every 250m felt like it would last forever. It was tough but the sense of achievement I can't even begin to describe.
With no swimming coach, only this desire to prove to myself I could do it, I made my goal.
A year on I would quit my gym training which I loved, but had outgrown. I could not for the life of me figure out what I would do to fill the gap, as gym had been my life.
Swim Robben Island popped into my head. Don’t ask me why. I could not even walk in waves at the water’s edge without falling over. Just looking at the movement of the water affected my sense of balance. I loved to watch the ocean from the front seat of my car. So where this thought came from heaven still only knows.
A Thought Becomes a Dream
Once that thought had planted itself, it took on a life of its own. All of a sudden, the idea to swim opened the doors to all the things I had wanted to do all my life. I had always wanted to help other people. I wanted to create my own organization to help kids, animals and adults. I wrote to a friend in Australia and told him about my plans and explained that I had wanted to do this since I was 22. He wrote back to me lovingly telling me that my plans were most admirable, and not nearly as insane as I thought, “But Honey, there is already an organization that does all that, and it’s called the UN.” His advice was to sharpen my mind and direct my energy to one goal which I did. And so The Writing Stick Project was born, whose primary focus was on providing disadvantaged pre-scholars with stationery.
I love crayons and paper. When I had my illness at 7 years of age, I lay in hospital for nine months. I had been paralysed by a germ which attacked my spinal cord. All I had to keep me company were my crayons and my colouring in books which were mostly of ballet and ballerinas. I can still smell the crayons and see each colour of those 24 crayons in the box. But the best part about these crayons was that I could draw and in colour in my dreams. You see I had been a ballet and tap dancer. The reason I worked so hard to learn to walk is because my greatest desire was to dance again, but that was not to be.
Speaking the Dream
I started telling my friends about my plans for my Robben Island swim. I saw them swallow hard and politely smile. “Yes, wonderful Lydia” while they are thinking: dream on. I often experienced a sinking feeling. From this I learned that the greatest encouragement can be discouragement. I made up my mind and set the date for my swim 8 May 2004.
At this point, I thought that to swim to Robben Island it was a simply a case of get someone with a kayak, pack some feeds and swim. Problem was I could swim in the pool but I had not been into the sea yet. On the last day of January 2004, I entered the sea for the first time. What a shock to my system. The water was freezing. I swore big words in my head and wondered what on earth I had let myself in for. The result of my illness is that I am a spastic diaplegic which in simple terms means that the harder my muscles work the harder they contract and I get tired very fast. I had been concerned because I did not know how the added factor of cold would affect me.
For the next few weeks I swam in whatever conditions the sea presented me, cold water, warm water, big waves, little waves. Every cession was a giggle because afterward I’d sit on the beach having coffee and shiver and shake the contents out of my cup. Slowly my body adapted, the shivering subsided and the water and I became friends. Here I found my freedom, my passion and I lost my fear.
Living the Dream
By now I had learnt that Robben Island swims are conducted under the watchful eye of the Cape Long Distance Swimming Association. An observer is sent on the boat to ensure that the rules of international openwater swimming rules are adhered to: you can only wear a standard bathing costume, goggles and a standard swimming cap – no wet suits. Once in the water you are not allowed to hold onto the boat for support and if you get back on board, it means you have aborted your swim and you will have to try another day. (See My thanks page)
Well, the 8th of May came and went; I could not do my swim on the 8th because of a problem with the boat. The next two Saturdays were all called off because of a heavy fog that would not budge. Finally, on May 26, the conditions were right to officially call the swim.
After 3 weeks of frustration at waiting to swim and learning about patience very fast, I got into the water at Robben Island with not a doubt in my mind that I would be fine. I had trained so hard. At 30 minutes into the swim I stopped for my first feed, and I found myself in trouble. I could not tip my juice bottle up to drink, because I could not tread water and balance. I would just spin in circles. I thought to myself its just nerves everything will be better on stop no 2. Well nothing was any better. I was scared as I could not get sufficient fluids into my body. Stop no 3 even worse. After that I threw up everything in my tummy. Circumstances at 1 and half hours into my swim were very difficult for me. On the boat, the observer and the pilot thought "another 20 minutes and she will be out of the water". They’d seen this scene many times before.
But I could not abort my swim as certain friends had sponsored each kilometre that I would complete, to donate to The Writing Stick Project. That thought kept me going.
6 hours and 4 minutes, two kms off course as a result of the current and the wind which had come up, I finished my swim. I had not had a drop to drink since 1 and half hours into my swim. But I had survived.
By the next week I had decided I wanted to do Robben Island to Three Anchor Bay – a 10 kilometre swim.
My biggest problem was still my feeds so I set about designing my own type of juice bottle with a straw in it, attached it to an extendable dog leash, so that it could be thrown to me and retrieved if I miss the throw. I had to identify and rectify my problem so that I could push my limits. If I could not sort out my feeds there was no way I could think of tackling bigger swims. I had stopped taking notice of all the “no’s”. I knew I could achieve my heart’s desire.
In July 2005, I achieved my Three Anchor Bay swim. Then I started to dream about swimming the English Channel.
In preparation for my first Channel attempt, I became the first woman and by default the first disabled person to complete Double Robben Island swim.
And so I left for my Channel attempt in August 2006. But my dream would have to wait for another try. After swimming for 7 hours I developed backache and had to abort my swim. I swore to myself I would not try again but the next morning I phoned the pilot to book for 2007.
My 2007 Channel attempt changed the way I look at myself. The experience I’d gained ... priceless. I had learnt how limitless life really and truly is.
In 2009, I will try again for a third time. I know that luck will have nothing to do with my success.
Two memorable quotes from friends after my first swim, I think sum it up best:
"The dream was written in the stars by the hand of God, and is now being written by the hand of man." (Martie)"You have finally proved that your physical strength is equal to your spiritual strength." (John)
