At 7 years old, David couldn't swim. Because a wave had almost drowned him, fear was imprinted in his mind! He couldn't even get his face under the water. He trusted me, so I made him a promise.
''I can get rid of your fear in the bathroom in just a couple of minutes. After that, I'll teach you to swim in the morning. If you can accomplish that, I'll take you for an adventure in Hawaii, ok?'' Tales of a viewer submarine and glorious multicolored fish got his hesitant agreement.

''Blowing bubbles out your nose, will teach you how not to choke on the water, all right?'' I encouraged. At the sink, ''Just standing here, you can't possibly feel afraid, right?'' His nod took us to the next stage. ''Now you are going to blow bubbles in the sink water, ok?'' He did it.

Next came the bathtub, a larger body of water with the same agenda. This time, whole head under! He was even more excited!
The poolside in the morning had him standing waist deep in the water. ''I'm going to hold your head while you float like a board, arms outstretched.'' brought eager compliance.

''I'm just going to hold you, so you can see how your body acts in the water.'' he stiffened a little, out of fright. ''I'm holding you up, no need to be afraid. I'm going to let my grip loosen a little, but my hands are still holding you.'' had me letting his body float, but with the hint of my hands still at his head.

At this point, he was actually floating, but needed the reassurance that I was holding his up which I was not. He was actually floating by himself, but gentle teaching is self-confidence building! I said, ''Look at your arms now. They are floating.'' He looked, ''I'm not holding you up now.'' brought feet down, and arms sank too.

''Did you watch them sink, when you were afraid? Didn't choke on water, did you? You were floating by yourself the whole time. Understand? When you are in over your head, you can float without drowning!'' Magic words to non-swimmers! Now he excitedly pleaded! ''Yes, yes, teach me more!!!''

Ever see a frog swim? It's the most natural, easiest, and strongest type stroke. So the altered frog stroke is great to teach! (Arms pull rhythmically from the front while the legs pull together.) Just by pointing out the type of stroke, explained what he needed next.
''Swim under water holding your breath for a stroke, then stroke to the top, and take a quick breath! If you need to stop, just float!'' Two magic words, Just float!

Now his confidence grew! He tried and all within 10 minutes he was swimming and loving it! David went from non-swimmer to strong, in ten minutes! A good feeling of being helped by a friend is the most important thing!
The ''secret'' to teach swimming from NON-SWIMMERS TO STRONG, IN TEN MINUTES!
HAWAII HERE WE COME!!