I have always been afraid of cold water. Growing up in a boating family, this was not a great trait to have. I was, my parents said, “a percher”. That is, I PERCHED on the side of the boat, sticking one foot in, then the other, then getting back IN the boat, only to perch on the side again, dip in foot one, dip in foot two, and repeat… The idea that once I committed to jumping in the lake, my entire body would be cold literally froze me in my track and had me stay in the boat (unless I was gently pushed in…). I remember this as a story of my friend Monica and I, but it could just as well be a story about one of my sisters told so many times over the years that I attribute it to happening to me. Monica (Monj) and I had been brought to the pool by her mom. Looking back, it was a ridiculous pool. A large chunk of it was SHADED BY TREES! Who wants to swim in the shade?? Obviously, the shade meant cooler water, and on the day Monj and I were there it felt like ICE