Testimony of Healing September 23, 2002 Issue

In the swim, unafraid

Thelma Luedeman

When I was a little girl, I was so afraid of the water that I couldn't go out in a boat or get into water of any depth without being scared. I wanted to swim like other children, but it just seemed impossible to stop being afraid. Even at bath time, I had to have Grandma with me.

I lived with her in the south-western part of the United States, where we worked as migrant fruit and vegetable pickers. We were very poor. Often we stayed with lots of relatives in small, old buildings or shacks. When the crops were all picked, we would move on to the next farm.

Because I didn't have a permanent home, I thought that most of the children I met in school were better than I was. I was always looking in on other children's lives, trying to fit in somehow. My lack of selfesteem made overcoming my fears seem like an impossible dream. I thought I would have to be afraid all of my life—just learn to live with it.

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