Shared Space

Since December 2021, I've been swimming regularly, which does me so much good.  As well as improving my fitness, a really good swim gives my brain a rest.  I've found that when I get going, I become too occupied with rhythm and breathing to think much about anything else!  On the odd occasion when I have a lane or even the pool to myself, I can set my own pace, choose a wide stroke, and lose myself in swimming however I please.  However, there's usually the added dynamic of sharing the water with others, which makes things a little more complicated.

If there's just one other person in a lane, we can take a side each and forget about one another.  If someone else joins us, then we'll adapt, swimming clockwise instead.  The more swimmers of various speeds, the greater their impact upon my pace.  I may need to speed up to overtake, or pause at one end to let someone go past me.  Every so often a queue develops as faster swimmers catch others up.

Most of those swimming lengths seem fairly considerate, though some are apparently oblivious to others.  It's far messier when the roped off area is in use by a class, because the rest of the space becomes a free-for-all.  Then, completing a length may involve veering around those comparing handstands, cajoling infants, or retrieving a sinky toy.  If I can get into a rhythm, I might suddenly get a mouthful of water instead of air when a kid jumps in nearby.

In a particularly busy pool, when approaching the deep end feels slightly risky and the shallow end reassembles dodgems, I can't swim in anything like straight lines.  There's a choice to make: abandon my swim, plough on with potential for frustration, or slow right down until more space clears.  In such moments, I sometimes find myself pondering the pool as an action-picture of life, and the shared space of community.

Image by David Mark from Pixabay

When I book a session, I know whether or not there'll be lane swimming, but I often have no idea how many others will turn up.  My swim will usually need to take other pool users into account.  Since I wear goggles and a cap, some have referred to me as "a proper swimmer".  I find this amusing, as I'd sooner apply that to those who seem to effortlessly maintain a steady pace for length after length, or even the few that swim butterfly.

A public swim session largely doesn't dictate right or wrong ways to occupy the water.  Sure, there are boundaries to what's ok or even safe, but even if I've swum undisturbed for quite a while before someone else gets in,  I have no claim on the space.  I've occasionally physically bumped with a child or a fellow handstand-dodger, or received an apology from a parent whose little one blocked my path, and once or twice I've said with a smile, "it's no problem, it's everyone's pool".

It's sometimes hard to apply that principle in life.  If we understand there to be 'proper' ways of doing things, it's so easy to judge those who don't follow those rules.  Sometimes I find myself sharing space with someone whose contribution is akin to a mushroom float that has no regard for my neat lines.  Not everyone is aware of or interested in considering others, and it's especially hard to graciously allow someone whose splashes I've just swallowed push off ahead of me.

When we find ourselves hampered or irritated by others, there are choices to make.  Sometimes there's the option of a quitting a particular space, and I don't mean to say that that's never appropriate for a time or even permanently, but could a changed approach contribute to a better alternative?  Previously, I've tended to plough on and become frustrated by obstacles—especially those that seem intentionally obstructive or blatantly inconsiderate.  Increasingly though, I'm learning that very often it is necessary to slow right down, and that doing so might not be such a bad thing.

In adjusting my expectations to what is going on around me—which involves the priorities and movements of people who I can't and shouldn't try to control—there's an opportunity to remember that I have no claim on this space: it's for all of us.  Acknowledging that with grace can go a very long way to making shared space a place for true community.⬦

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