I'm starting to adjust to swimming in lakes instead of in pools. It's been a tough adjustment to make. At the beginning I was too scared to look into the water to use goggles but couldn't open my eyes without stopping to wipe away the water so I would only breaststroke with my head above water, I can't swim in a straight line without guidance from lane lines or painted tiles, The weeds freaks me out, so do the fish, so do the lake monsters that I imagine slipping through the water beneath me. Where is the wall every 25 or 50m? How can I count laps or measure distance? I like swimming in straight lines, I feel lost in the middle of a big lake, there's no logical point to turn around and swim back or buoys to mark out a course.

I realized today that I don't have to swim in a straight line. Make fun of my epiphany if you want to. I could close my eyes and just swim wherever without aiming for a particular point. I'm still avoiding the weeds but I'm conquering my straight line obsession.