Grandson shows innocent way to look at life

This article is dedicated to my grandson Jason, who has had almost daily “time of my life” experiences since we acquired the backyard swimming pool.

I always knew ... that a 9-year-old could get maximum use and enjoyment out of a 3.5 by14 foot-pool. We adults are under the sad impression that one needs room to swim, in order to enjoy water. What one really needs is imagination.

I never knew ... that sharks could survive in a small space, chlorinated water, and fresh water, at that. This is something which you have taught me, and if I’m ever tempted to doubt it, all I have to do is ask your younger sister, who is firmly convinced.

I always knew ... that there was a reason I bought those three solid rubber orcas in that strange little store in Roswell. I now realize that it was so we could dive for them in a pool we would get, three years later.

I never knew ... that those orcas, on a size-appropriate scale, would find our back yard pool to be most if not all of the Arctic Ocean.

I always knew ... that swimming at night is at least as much fun as swimming in the daytime, and that the darkness makes it that much easier to imagine things hiding in the water.

I never knew ...