last swim meet

Sending best wishes for a Merry Christmas/Happy Hanukkah!! For last minute gifts to be delivered before the holidays: bit.ly/memoiroffer 

The next segment of our story:
Most Sundays, Beth wheeled over a mile and a half from her Stanford dorm to the local farmer's market with friends. The unused push handles on the back of her wheelchair made handy holders for bags of fruit, vegetables, bread, and cheese. She also liked the market at San Francisco’s Ferry Building, where vendors offered enough free samples to make up a meal. 
            
On a weekend trip with her law school roommates, Beth held a parrot on the San Diego boardwalk..With several students in one hotel room, the trips were inexpensive. She toured Wine Country in the rolling countryside north of San Francisco was beautiful. When Maria visited over spring break, Beth read from a thick law book while they sunned on the beaches at Santa Cruz and Half Moon Bay.
                        
One night as she transferred into bed in her dorm, Beth fell to the floor when a wheelchair brake didn’t hold.  
 
She attempted to get off the floor on her own for only a short time before texting her three roommates to ask for help. The bed was too high. One of them saved the day (night). Beth’s aversion to asking for help evolved to a reluctant acceptance and the realization that it wasn’t a weakness. All of us need help sometimes. 
                        
In March, Beth flew to San Antonio with her boyfriend for her reclassification appointment and her first swim meet since Beijing. I encouraged her to sign up for long races; with her unusually high stamina, she easily could rack up several more American Records in addition to the 14 she held. 
 
Beth chose not to since the number of records never mattered to her.
            
The international experts at the Texas meet assigned her the same exact classification, despite the wide range of physical function among her competitors. Unless a mass retesting of S3 women resulted in classification accuracy—not at all likely—Beth’s odds of medaling at the next Paralympics remained low. Reconnecting with coach Peggy and other friends at the meet balanced the disappointing news. 
            
Beth’s swim times in San Antonio earned her a place on Team USA for the World Championships in the Netherlands, despite not training for the meet and enjoying the River Walk each evening. She declined the Netherlands trip since it interfered with her upcoming summer law internship. After her last race in Texas, Beth hugged Peggy goodbye to return to law school, fondly remembering their seven years of swimming quests. 
 
Beth retired from competitive swimming with 14 S3 American Records, seven short course and seven long course.

Next: An End and a Beginning!