1961: What Were You Doing?

For many of you reading this, that question will be easy to answer: you simply weren’t born. But others of you are old enough to remember, or at least have your memories jogged, about what you were doing fifty years ago in 1961. It was an exciting time, with the excitement of the sixties decade ahead still full of promises.

For me, it was my last year as a pre-teen. This seemed significant back then, not because of world events, or even local events in my community. It was significant because 1961 was the beginning of a more independent life and the beginning of making my own decisions about how I would spend my time and with whom.

In 1961 I turned 12 years old, in my last year of primary school. I was exposed to many new things that year. Some of those experiences were valuable, while some were connected with the curious process of growing up. New skills, ideas and friendships blossomed throughout the year, many serving to shape my future and become life long interests. I was growing up, preparing to leave my sheltered childhood behind.

1961 was life changing for me because it was the year I informed my parents I was joining a swimming club. That decision shaped the rest of the life. From swimming club I soon became one of the youngest members of the swimming squad. Many of the squad members become life long friends. Much of my life since the age of 12 has been spent in and around swimming pools, as a competitive swimmer, a swimming teacher and coach and the wife of a swimming pool manager. Had I not joined a swimming club in 1961 my whole life would have been different.

Swimming quickly became the thing that shaped my life. I discovered I had determination and a competitive nature. In 1961 I swam a mile for the first time in the school swimming pool and received a certificate for it. I swam in my first races and won them, graduating very quickly from ‘B’ grade carnivals or swim meets to ‘A’ grade events. I broke my first swimming record and represented my province for the first time. I switched from swimming freestyle to backstroke and learned to swim butterfly, a stroke still in its early days of development.

Photo: Swimming club prize giving at the end of my first season. I’m second from the right in the top row.

There were many other firsts in 1961 as my childhood days slipped slowly away. I was lucky to have the support of my coach and swimming friends to help me through the transition into teenage years.

Thanks to my decision to join a swimming club, 1961 was a memorable year for me. The skills learnt through participating in swimming have continued helping me throughout my life. Fifty years is a long time to be able to look back on and remember. Do you remember what you were doing in 1961?