Saturday Swimming

April 27, 2013

It all started in January with our weekly French lessons. Céline and I left the house every Saturday afternoon, driving to a nearby community where our course was offered.

We were gone all afternoon and Damien felt antsy stuck at home with the younger two and no vehicle (we are a one car family, as we always have been).

After our first or second week of this Damien said, "we're coming to town when you go to French." There's not a lot of places to go in town on a Saturday afternoon in winter. But there is a cafe. And a swimming pool. And so a new routine was born.

On Saturday afternoon we'd all leave the house together. Damien would drop Céline and I off at our French class and then he and the kids would go to the swimming pool, and after that, the cafe. Then they'd pick us up when our class ended, late in the afternoon.

When our first semester of French was over, mid-March, the Saturday afternoons in town continued.

Now I'm the one dropping Damien off at the cafe, where he can work in peace for a couple hours. I take the kids swimming - where I sit on the sidelines and do my own computer work - writing, photo editing, household planning stuff.

Then we meet Damien back at the cafe, where the kids and I have our own hot drinks before we head home for the late afternoon and evening.

A nice local swimming pool is a treat. Maine is not known for its fabulous recreation centers. It's known for beaches and camps, woods and mountains. We have that here also, but we also have a local pool. Score.

Last week, I asked Brienne if she would like to ask a friend to join us for Saturday afternoon swimming. "No", she said, "I like swimming with just Laurent and Céline".

As Céline grows up she lives in another world, intellectually and socially, from her siblings. The time my kids spend doing things together is less than it used to be.

When Laurent and Brienne enter young adulthood I suspect my kids' worlds will align once more. But now, it's Céline mostly in one world and the other two still in childhood.

But not when they swim. When they swim, or run (or pretty much do any active outdoor pursuit) together, they share the same world. The same activity, a common experience.

This is as important to me as the physical activity itself. These children of mine who have lived nearly 24/7 for their entire lives, still like to be together and enjoy each other's company. I love that.

Yes, they need friends and we are thrilled that Céline especially has started to find her tribe (online mostly). She will be fourteen next month. Friends mean more and more to her and we understand that.

But siblings are first friends. And when you homeschool, your siblings are the peers you spend most of your day with.

Enjoying their company isn't just nice, it's necessary to have peaceful and happy days together. I am thankful my kids share this kind of relationship with each other. And I'm happy to add swimming to our schedule if it helps to foster their friendship.