This post could contain affiliate links or be sponsored which means I earn from advertising. Also as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. More details here.
From the moment I first heard “Just Keep Swimming” in Finding Nemo I was hooked. No pun intended on that little fish bit. Honestly it was a phrase that really resonated with me. At the time I was newly married and living in San Antonio, TX. The year was 2003 and I was just trying to figure out what exactly I wanted to do with my life in terms of education.
I should have graduated from college years prior. 3 years prior to be exact. But somehow that didn’t happen or go according to plan. I had left school amidst some unfortunate circumstances and for a bit decided that I was not going to just keep swimming at all. Far from it. In fact I was doing the opposite of swimming. I was drowning. Admitting my defeat and moving back home was one of the hardest things for me to do. For 8 months I just went through the motions. I had no goals. No real plans. Just existed. In that 9th month of being back home I decided that some things needed to change in my life. I needed to change. My life wasn’t going anywhere fast and I was the reason for the delay. I got my act together and started focussing on what was truly important. I enrolled in a local religion class and began attending FHE activities with other single adults of my faith. These decisions resulted in some life long friendships and a path in the right direction.
It was there that I met this dashing audiology student. He and I had an instant connection. It wasn’t a romantic type of relationship. Not at all. Sure he was crazy good looking and I was attracted to him but he was already in a long term relationship. Plus, I was still not in the right place to be dating anyone. I needed to still focus on myself. So we were just friends. We had a close knit group of friends and had a lot of fun together. That future audiologist man accepted me for me and I slowly began to find myself again. I kept swimming.
Somewhere along the way he ended the relationship with his long time girlfriend and our friendship continued to grow. We started dating, got engaged and the rest is history. I will forever remember that time when we were “just friends” and how I found myself again. It was a time of not depending on anyone else, especially a love interest, to make me happy. I had to learn how to make myself happy.
Shortly after Finding Nemo was released I decided that it was time to go back to school. My audiologist man lovingly support me in all of the decisions along the way. Love that audiologist man of mine! This decision came with its own challenges. I needed to figure out what I wanted to finish my degree in. I needed to retake quite a few classes. I needed to study. I needed to pass and not fail. But I kept swimming.
And in 2007 I finally graduated with a B.A. in Psychology from the University of Texas at San Antonio. It’s something that I accomplished. It’s something that I achieved. It’s something that can never be taken away from me. It’s something that has opened so many doors for me. All because I kept swimming.
Always remember to just keep swimming.
FINDING DORY opens in theatres everywhere on June 17, 2016.
Can’t wait to hear that magic phrase “just keep swimming” again.
Recommended Posts
Tara
blog owner at Seeing Dandy Blog
This post could contain affiliate links or be sponsored which means I earn from advertising. Also as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. More details here.