The other day, I went swimming late in the afternoon at the community fitness center. It was a snow day for local schools and I found myself swimming with members of a local high school swim team. Since their school pool was closed, they had to venture out to seek water. Teens on a swim team are rip-roaring fast. As a middle-aged swimmer, I’m fast enough but can’t compete with the agility and swiftness of swimmers four decades younger.
Teens are incredibly energetic. They stop at the end of the
lane to rest, but they are restless – jumping up and down on one leg or
high-fiving each other. I felt newly energized just being around them. It was
almost as if an osmosis transfer of energy was occurring.
There were four teenage boys in the next lane and a teenage
girl in my lane. I gave her wide berth – we split the lane. But when two other female swimmers came (one in
her 40s, the other in her 20s) we ended up swimming circles. It all worked out,
with the slower swimmers giving way to the swifter ones.
Contrast that to my usual swimming companions: mostly seniors,
whose swimming style can be summed up as “slooooow.” Many don’t really know how
to swim, but manage to get from one end of the pool to the other. They may be
doing a one-armed back stroke; a fully extended back stroke – where they take
up the whole lane by reaching as wide as possible with their arms and legs; or
a breaststroke where they also take up most of the lane.
Being with people who move in the same energy circles is
empowering. Are you associating with people whose energy levels match yours?
Or, do you feel held back or out of your element because your friends or
companions are out of synch with your stride? Taken further, do your friends
and associates lift you up or
bring you down? If it’s the former, you’re swimming with the right people. If
it’s the latter, investigate your motives for being friends with those who make
you feel bad or are perpetually in a bad mood.
Are you trying to help them out of a tough situation…hoping
their outlook will improve once they get over a hurdle? Or, are you stuck with
people you really shouldn’t be with - out of habit? Have you ever experienced
that dreaded feeling that someone doesn’t fit well in your life anymore yet you
don’t know what to do about it?
This post isn’t intended to have you second-guess all of
your friendships, but, by extrapolation, it does seem if your friends’ energy
level is close to your own and their attitude is within the same sphere as
yours, your friendship will be a better fit with a more lasting seal. (swimming
pun intended). Now, go enjoy your day.
