Dreams So Real

The last time I went swimming I had a very unique experience. At the rec center that I have my membership to they require that all kids under the age of 18 leave the pool for a set 10 minutes at the top of every hour for a "bathroom break". Most of the kids just sit at the edge of the pool and wait. The benefit of these 10 minutes is the fact that I get the pool mostly to myself without having to worry about kids jumping on me. This time, I was swimming with a new mer-friend, Koral. About 15 kids lined up on the edge of the pool to watch us dive. I was exhausted, as we had already been swimming for a little over an hour, but I didn't want to disappoint the kids, so I put on a show. We were diving and swimming and flipping our tails. The kids were cheering and laughing like we were performers at Sea World. All except for one little girl. It was her response to being able to see a real mermaid that shocked and saddened me. It was a terrible reminder that so many children grow up too quickly. Too many people forget that fantasy, magic, and make believe are important, and healthy. She insisted that we weren't "real mermaids". And began to threaten us when we continued to tell her that we were real. Provided, these were threats of a 9 year-old. Threats of, "I'll tell my mom you're lying" and "I know a cop, and he'll arrest you for lying". I got to the point that I just laughed it off and swam away. Because yes, I'm sure some police officer is going to take the time to reprimand a performer for telling you she's real, or that your mother is going to ground me. What I said to the little girl was, "I'm sorry that you don't believe me, but I am a real mermaid, if I wasn't I wouldn't be able to swim in this tail!" What I was thinking was, "Look you little shit, you're ruining the magic for everyone else, I don't care what you believe, but quit ruining it for the other kids." But I did feel bad for poor Koral, being fairly new to the swimming part of mermaiding, was a little upset by how rude this girl was. More upset by the fact that she insisted on making her friends not believe either. The sad thing? I get kids like this all the time. Sure, I get more kids that see me as a mythical creature, but for ever 10 that believe, I get 1-2 that insist on ruining the magic for everyone else.

It's interesting, because I get the question, "Are you a real mermaid?" almost every time I go to the pool. My answer is ALWAYS YES. I remember once a kid asking me why I would lie to people about being a mermaid. And I thought this was an interesting point. When you go to Disneyland and meet Cinderella, no one asks her if she's real, because she is. There's Cinderella, blue ball gown and all, standing right in front of you. Real as day. A mermaid performer isn't any different. Yes, I am a real mermaid. Why? Because I'm a mermaid in my heart, I believe I am a mermaid, I perform as a mermaid. Therefore I am a mermaid. If you think about it though, what does a mermaid have? A tail, and the ability to swim in it. The lore varies on whether or not they live in the ocean or lakes, can breathe underwater or not, can change into a human or not, eat people or not, etc. But all mermaids have one thing in common. A tail of some kind (or an incredible swimming ability) and a love of the water. I have both. Therefore I am a mermaid. But this thought process can be applied to every dream that you have. You are what you dream. I don't care if you're a princess, a mermaid, or a unicorn you can be whatever you dream. Dreams are real. Dreams come true. I'm living proof. So the next time some brat child comes up to me and insists that I'm not real (or the next time ANYONE comes up to you and insists that your dreams aren't possible) just remember that if you can dream it, you can DO IT. Go ahead. Ask me if I'm a real mermaid. Because I am.