Simply Hold Swimming: A Story of Survival

MADISON, Ala. (TENNESSEE VALLEY LIVING) – Doctors instructed his dad and mom he wouldn’t dwell to be 3 months. Today, he’s 66 years previous.

Don Gardner was born with brittle bone illness — which means he’s survived dozens of fractures throughout his life time.

“The reason it’s so hard to keep count is a lot of times…. coughing or sneezing really hard or something can crack a rib,” Don says. “Basically you just learn to accommodate not to do things that aggravate it.”

One factor Don discovered he might do although was swim.

“In the pool,” Don says, “if you lose your balance, and you fall… so what?! You’re in the water. The water catches you.”

That type of train would add years to his life, particularly after an attention-grabbing problem in the future led Don to kick issues up a notch.

“I got an email. The email said, ‘Can you swim 21 miles in 4 months?’ And I’m like, ‘Who knows? Let’s find out!’”

Don would find yourself blowing that problem out of the water — swimming not 21 miles, however 32 in that timeframe. Now, after then deciding to maintain a log through the years, Don has since tracked greater than 1300 miles within the pool.

“I get people who say really kind things, and they’re really encouraging. I cannot tell you what that means.”

Above all although, Don attributes his longevity to his religion in The Lord.

“[Life] is not fair. It’s not! My whole thought is, I’m glad life’s not fair. Because if life was fair, then I would pay the price for my sins and not Him. But He paid the price for my sins, and that wasn’t fair for Him. But He did it willingly.”

As for what’s subsequent for Don…

“I’m going to church at Mayfair in Huntsville, and we’ve a publication for our senior members, which I’m the editor. I do World Bible School. Occasionally I train. I’ve plenty of little tasks that I work on… Wherever God’s going to take me.”

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