Author Archives: Mary McCormic-McInnis

I knew this would get harder in wintertime—I just underestimated how hard by a long shot. By many long shots, actually. The weight of the Northwest winters in the before (COVID) times were bleak enough to make one not want to get out of bed, let alone swim in icy water. And I wasn’t openContinue reading “January 4, 2021”

I’ve been wanting to make this for a long time—a spiral of mostly moon snail shells and fragments, curling outwards and inwards upon our dining room table. I finished lining them up, one by one, around 10pm tonight, and by 10:05pm surrendered to my inner water sprite, whipped on my red swimsuit and bathrobe, andContinue reading “January 1, 2021”

A toast to the Salish Sea, and the many friends made in and out of the water. It only seemed right to close out the last day of the year, this year, with a swim with Dave, my open water swimming mentor, friend and neighbor. The water was choppy and a strong southerly wind batteredContinue reading “December 31, 2020”

Marrowstone Island. We made it there and back again today—the boys relived their younger days running around the bunkers and reminiscing about the annual family school retreats to Fort Flagler while I swam in Mystery Bay and combed the beaches for shells and watched the clouds change colors in the sky while our dog ranContinue reading “December 28, 2020”

That’s me on the right, eye to tail with the salmon. My big sis had the tough job of balancing dad’s catch for the photo. And I had my Pom Pom shoes to keep clean apparently, with killer overalls to boot. Spunky. That is one of my dad’s favorite words. And mice—most children, including myContinue reading “December 27, 2020”

I passed by bright white snow berries on my way to the beach today. At the shore, waves tipped with white caps crashed in coating the beach with white foam, fuzzy and thick, completely obscuring the rocks and pebbles and crushed shells beneath. Across the water, below a bright December sky crowded with clouds, theContinue reading “December 26, 2020”

So today I swam right into a float, unscathed I’m happy to report, and lifted my head out of the icy water to the sounds of cheering. Life onshore and life in the water urged me on today, as I struggled to manage the coldest water to date. Yesterday snow fell in some neighboring towns,Continue reading “December 23, 2020”

Yesterday, as my youngest son and I drove the island roads delivering holiday cookies to friends, between stops we acknowledged the heavy feel of this season before us. I told him that despite everything happening everywhere, we can hold on to the fact that we are one day closer to the shortest day of theContinue reading “December 20, 2020”

Hold fast, for tonight I shall write of the light and the dark and the wind and the waves, each bound to the other, no more or lesser than the other. All needed. All a part of the whole. All teachers. In near darkness I ended this third swim of December, six days before theContinue reading “December 15, 2020”

Six days since my last December swim. The water is thick with cold and small flecks of seaweed swirling out with the tide, dancing on invisible currents—all is green and quiet. I almost retreat, almost stop before I even start, but like now, this time, this unrelenting march through days full of numbers and masksContinue reading “December 10, 2020”