Short Stories Collection

Olympic Dream (Short Story)

Author Note: (Summary:)

Just a girl with a dream who happens to face many challenges to reach her dream.

When Rayleigh was a little girl, she had this one dream of becoming the world's most successful and most decorated Olympian of all time but there is one thing that is standing her away, she is chronically ill with multiple chronic illnesses and disabilities that can turn terminal which can kill her in a snap of a finger. Rayleigh is a competitive swimmer all of her life. She started swimming before she could walk and soon, she will be classified as a USA Para swimmer. Throughout her years she has battled to survive and continued to swim knowing the dangers of competing at a competitive level of swimming with her many conditions and knowing that she can die in a swim race.

Short Story:

When I was a little girl, I had this fear of drowning in the swimming pool and ending up dying on the pool deck before the paramedics arriving on the scene and probably taking me to a hospital in order of being checked out. When I was a toddler, before I started to walk, I started to learn to swim, I picked up swimming faster than I could walk. I was so excited with being in the water, my parents thought I would turn into a mermaid in a matter of seconds.

When I was a young child, I started my journey of becoming a competitive swimmer to become an Olympic swimmer and to able to reach my dream and show everyone what I can do, there was some twists and turns of reaching my dream such as getting diagnosed with one or two multiple chronic illnesses with disabilities at a time.

When I was about the age of thirteen, I have about ten rare different diseases and disorders that made chronically ill, it all started when I was a baby and my parents had known idea what was going on with the help of many medical staff who help explain to my parents and I throughout the years of having multiple tests, treatments, hospital stays, testing with some producers and even surgeries.

When I started high school my illnesses and disabilities were so complex that I needed a service dog just to live independently, wherever I go my sidekick comes with me to make sure I am safe at times. I still swam through my high school years and swam in multiple swimming clubs in order to gain more strength, skills and to become faster in the pool to become qualified on the national swimming team and go to the Olympics. I have gained many friends and lost many friends due to being sick but losing friends which means taking native people out of my life in order to focus on my health and dream.

I got one in a lifetime adventure when I got classified for the para swimming team with multiple classifications which I have more chances in winning medals, competition at all kinds of swim meets in my county and anywhere in the world. This was the happiest thing that I could never imagined with reaching my goal and proving to many people that I should never give up and just keep swimming.

When you are chronically ill with multiple chronic illnesses and disabilities, you tend to become your own superhero. I am still competing, spreading awareness, and becoming a nurse to help others like me to achieve their dream with being chronically ill. One thing I was taught though my many years of battling to survive and swimming. When someone tells you that you can't do something, then you should prove them wrong, you can do anything that you put your mind to, you just need to have positive and supportive people in your life.