Good morning Scarborough! What a cracking morning and what a cracking evening last night: another full house and full of lovelies. Very receptive and very verbal! Thought I was starting a stand up set at the start ha!
Met members of the audience at 8am in the sunshine on North Bay Scarborough. They were all waiting for me as I arrived fashionably late. Was quite surprised how cold the water was as we all got in! Think Suffolk lured me into a false sense of warmth!
There were 2 large groups of ladies representing Hub sea swimmers and Scarborough sea souls who greeted me with warm smiles. It was nice to swim with everyone together. We had a natter about how many from the groups had retired here or moved for the lifestyle. They told me how good life was here. I chatted to one older lady who grew up in Northern Ireland swimming everyday as they lived by the harbour, and when she moved to England she just had to run to the sea again.
Now there's no shame in being the first one out of the water, and that was me today by far! Think I'm so tired on tour and the water was fresh! Me and my skinny chest and cossie were out after 10mins. I watched from the shore as the multi coloured tows and hats bobbed out to sea. Had a cuddle of their dogs patiently waiting for their owners (haven't hugged a dog since mine died, so that's progress!)
I waited for everyone to get out and said my thank yous and farewells and we headed back in the van to hit the road for our final show tonight (with a workshop I'm running beforehand).
It's probably going to all catch up on me over the next few weeks: all the incredible people I have met as I've blogged my swims around various UK locations. There is a common tbread stringing them all together: community and care; relationship and love; humaneness & experience. All the groups had their various rituals (which were all very similar) and these rituals are as natural as swimming itself.
As I conclude my show this evening, and as I conclude each show with the lines which I wrote during lockdown and which, I feel, still apply: "Everyone in this together, in this body of water, in this isolation, in this need to feel like we're not alone".
It's been a pleasure to meet you UK swim community. Over and out.
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