The major news outlets tried their bored best to keep this story under wraps but slowly through out the week an incredible story emerged:
About a woman.
Swimming from Cuba to Key West.
At the age of 64.
Without the protection of a shark cage.
After she ‘d failed to do it four times before.
We don’t tend to celebrate or acknowledge the accomplishments of women over 50 in the USA —okay there’s that Over 50 page on Huffington Post but by and large women over the age of 50 are relegated to mother/grandmother status and we turn our heads away from their bodies and minds unless of course they’re getting plastic surgery to ‘fix themselves’ and there by looking younger.
But this week this was beautifully turned on its head because we—and I do mean we—have Diana Nyad to remind us of all things that are possible when we shut out the naysayers, even the naysayers in our mind and just do things anyway. Like it says on her website, “find a way.” And as the map on her website so adamantly puts it: “She freaking made it.”
Articles in various news sites have now picked up the story (yay!) and pointed out that the stretch from Key West to Cuba isn’t a pleasant one. Warm shark-loving water with a river of a current in the middle of it and all sorts of muck to swim through. A true test of endurance for anyone—and how many people have perished on crowded boats between the two shores? That’s 110 miles without a shark tank and her fifth try.
I guess that’s kind of the hardest part. We’re Americans. We don’t try five times to do anything. Diana Nyad said it took four years to prepare for this triumphant day and that her goal aside from the swim itself, was to ‘fully engage in life.’ I look at her photographs on her website and the images of her on various news sites and think , wow, I just learned more about what the human body is capable of here than I ever have anywhere.
In an interview with Newshour/PBS she’s just hilarious, fun, and so inspirational. Watch:
Thank you, Diana, for giving us all something greater than ourselves to aspire to and for talking about the swim in real tangible ways, reminding us how hard it was and all the grueling details of survival. You’ve shown us, a better way. Thank you for showing us that aging in every sense of the word, is physical, and that our bodies can be the temples we’ve wanted them to be.
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