"There he is, auntie! There he is!" exclaimed the little girl, waving excitedly to a boy older than her who waved back from the side of the pool.
When all the swimmers from the previous race were out of the water the next group went to the starting blocks, and with a short whistle, the race began. The little girl cheered as loud as she could alongside her aunt.
"What happened? Did we make it?" asked a woman rushing to their side, followed closely by her husband.
"Mom!" exclaimed the little girl with a huge smile on her face. "He's winning!"
"Look at him go!" said her dad, but she could barely hear him over the loud cheers of her mother.
When her brother reached the edge, seconds before the other kids, she screamed so loud she could feel her throat hurting, but it didn't matter.
"He won! He won!"
The boy was laughing along with a friend. His smile grew wider when he saw them there, cheering for him, and waved back as he exited the water to let the next group in the pool.
Years later, the little girl would remember that day as the day she decided she wanted to swim.