Fable courtesy of Ann Whitford; submitted by Madhu Nagaraja.

Ann Whitford is a prolific author of children’s books (see her book list here).

Below is a fable she wrote about her son Jonathon Paul’s shoulder injury and his subsequent English Channel crossing in 2005.

The fable is about Chihuahua who loved splashing and kicking in the pond so much his mother checked his chest for gills. One day, while watching a TV special about Great Long Lake, Chihuahua determined to swim across it.

He started working out immediately, swimming in the pond for an hour a day. His mother checked his back for scales. But Chihuahua’s shoulders stiffened and the veterinarian ordered no more swimming.

But Chihuahua had a dream. He increased his workouts to two hours a day. His mother checked his legs for fins.

Unfortunately, his mother’s work necessitated a move to the city. Did this put an end to Chihuahua’s dream? Absolutely not. Every morning he rode the subway 47 minutes to the pond and increased his workouts to three hours a day.

His mother didn’t need to check her son anymore. She knew he was a barracuda. Chihuahua kept on swimming and swimming.

Note: Chihuahua represents Whitmore’s 33-year-old son who completed a solo crossing of the English Channel in 11 hours 49 minutes, starting at 10:21 am and finishing at 10:10 pm in October 2005 [shown above].

© 2016 Daily News of Open Water Swimming

“to educate, enthuse, and entertain all those who venture beyond the shoreline“