I am from the turbulent ride down Valley Road.

From the place where the “out-of-towners” met

with evernote links to the vigorous hours of our lives.

I am from the brisk, mucky, rusted

pool deck of the YMCA.

I am from the intolerable turn off Baker Road.

From the icy glass windows to the beaming circle lights

that make seeing, breathing, hearing more difficult.

I am from the line of backed up cars entering

Brookfield Central.

I am from the smooth ride down Lilly Road.

From the shaky blocks to the aged scoreboard

that make training tough.

I am from the crisp, crowded

abandoned halls of Brookfield East.

I am from the hidden streets off Capital Drive.

From the place where scraped knees and swim collisions

taught us to be resilient.

I am from the four lane, three foot deep

shallow end of Milwaukee Lutheran.

I am from dedication, hard work, effort.

From the place we were raised trough a

tradition of excellence in life through swimming.

I am from the “Silver Medal” achieving

swim Team of Elmbrook Swim Club.