So, my son is a college swimmer, home for the summer before his Senior year. He's swimming three times a week, at most, going to the gym 2-3 x a week. He says he is transitioning to other things. I don't get it! He had a 2 year break between his sophomore and junior years while he went to Europe. You'd think that he would want to really get back in shape and go out with a bang, but he acts like being just an average swimmer is ok. Here I am wishing I could put MORE time into swimming and I can't, and he has plenty of time, and won't! I've tried to persuade him to give this last year all he's got, but I think I'm fighting a losing battle. And I don't want a battle. Feeling sad, cuz it's the end of an era.
As immature as it sounds now, turning 21, finishing school with decent grades, finding a (real) job, etc were bigger priorities and I couldn't wait until swim season was over.
That doesn't sound immature at all. I think, the farther we are from that age, it's hard to remember how difficult it is to finish college on a strong note, and how important it can be for a lot of students to set narrower priorities than they had in high school or their first couple of years. Good grades and the job search are very mature priorities, and in some cases they really do need all the time and energy a student has to spare. It's only natural for something like a sport to fall by the wayside a little bit.
A phenomenal final swim season is only great if it's really what the swimmer -- not the swimmer's parent, no the swimmer's coach, but the swimmer -- really wants. If it comes at the expense of things that have become higher priorities, then it's just a distraction.
As immature as it sounds now, turning 21, finishing school with decent grades, finding a (real) job, etc were bigger priorities and I couldn't wait until swim season was over.
That doesn't sound immature at all. I think, the farther we are from that age, it's hard to remember how difficult it is to finish college on a strong note, and how important it can be for a lot of students to set narrower priorities than they had in high school or their first couple of years. Good grades and the job search are very mature priorities, and in some cases they really do need all the time and energy a student has to spare. It's only natural for something like a sport to fall by the wayside a little bit.
A phenomenal final swim season is only great if it's really what the swimmer -- not the swimmer's parent, no the swimmer's coach, but the swimmer -- really wants. If it comes at the expense of things that have become higher priorities, then it's just a distraction.
