Ma's Place: It’s all in the “swing”

One morning this week as I walked the beach, I watched this crew working together to propel their craft through the water. It interested me so I when I returned home, I Googled “rowing” to learn more about it.

“Rowing, sometimes referred to as Crew in the United States, is a sport whose origins reach back to Ancient Egyptian times. It involves propelling a boat (racing shell) on water using oars. By pushing against the water with oars, rowers generate force to move the boat. The sport can be either recreational for enjoyment or fitness, or competitive, when athletes race against one another in boats. The training and physical strain on the body required to be a successful rower is intense. A very tough mind and body is needed to succeed. There are several different boat classes in which athletes may compete, ranging from an individual shell (called a single scull) to an eight-person shell with a coxswain (called a coxed eight).
Modern rowing as a competitive sport can be traced to the early 17th century when races (regattas) were held between professional watermen on the River Thames in London, United Kingdom. Often prizes were offered by the London Guilds and Livery Companies. Amateur competition began towards the end of the 18th century with the arrival of "boat clubs" at the British public schools of Eton College, Shrewsbury School, Durham School, and Westminster School. Similarly, clubs were formed at the University of Oxford, with a race held between Brasenose College and Jesus College in 1815. At the University of Cambridge the first recorded races were in 1827. Public rowing clubs were beginning at the same time; in England Leander Club was founded in 1818, in Germany Der Hamburger und Germania Ruder Club was founded in 1836 and in the United States Narragansett Boat Club was founded in 1838 and Detroit Boat Club was founded in 1839. In 1843, the first American college rowing club was formed at Yale University.”

While watching the men in the boat at the beach that morning, I thought of the talk given during the Women’s session of last October’s general conference by Sister Sharon Eubank titled “By Union of Feeling We Obtain Power with God”

In her remarks, she said:

“In 1936, an obscure rowing team from the University of Washington traveled to Germany to participate in the Olympic Games. It was the depths of the Great Depression. These were working-class boys whose small mining and lumber towns donated bits of money so they could travel to Berlin. Every aspect of the competition seemed stacked against them, but something happened in the race. In the rowing world, they call it “swing.” Listen to this description based on the book The Boys in the Boat:
There is a thing that sometimes happens that is hard to achieve and hard to define. It’s called “swing.” It happens only when all are rowing in such perfect unison that not a single action is out of sync.
Rowers must rein in their fierce independence and at the same time hold true to their individual capabilities. Races are not won by clones. Good crews are good blends—someone to lead the charge, someone to hold something in reserve, someone to fight the fight, someone to make peace. No rower is more valuable than another, all are assets to the boat, but if they are to row well together, each must adjust to the needs and capabilities of the others—the shorter-armed person reaching a little farther, the longer-armed person pulling in just a bit.
Differences can be turned to advantage instead of disadvantage. Only then will it feel as if the boat is moving on its own. Only then does pain entirely give way to exultation. Good “swing” feels like poetry.
Against towering obstacles, this team found perfect swing and won. The Olympic gold was exhilarating, but the unity each rower experienced that day was a holy moment that stayed with them all their lives.”

As I read through Sister Eubank’s talk, I couldn’t help but think of the lives and people around me. Last blog I talked about unity, getting rid of our enemies and making those enemies and everyone our friends.

Sister Eubank addresses this beautifully. I would invite you to read her talk. There is much to ponder and to learn from her words.

I have enjoyed a busy week. I made a presentation at our zone conference on Tuesday. President and Sister Parr asked me to address nutrition, weight gain, and healthy lifestyle. I taught about the importance of a well-balanced diet including foods from the various food groups, portion control, exercise, and hydration.

One of my handouts

I went to several doctor and physiotherapy appointments with missionaries this week and while out and about, was able to go to lunch with some missionaries.

Elders Yancey, Leiataua, Wilson

The weather has been wonderful. It hasn’t been too hot and the breezes and occasional rains have kept me cool. The beach is as always, awesome! I am going to miss my sunrises at the beach!!!

I made a terrible mistake this week! I discovered that the Sushi House just a half a block from me has a wide variety of sushi and it is good. The mistake is that now I know it is there and good, I will want to go there too often!!

These pictures popped up in my FaceBook memory page this week. Three years ago I was in Denver with some of my family members enjoying the National Western Stock Show and Rodeo. I have gone several years and it has become a tradition for us. Even my family members were not able to go this year as it was canceled due to COVID, but hopefully, I will be there next year to see some of these beautiful beasts in action.