Diana Nyad, Record-Breaking Swimmer, Offers Wise Words

Diana Nyad, a 64-year-old endurance swimmer from Los Angeles, emerged as the first person to swim unprotected from Cuba to Florida with three messages:

 “One is we should never, ever give up. Two is you never are too old to chase your dreams. Three is it looks like a solitary sport, but it’s a team.”

Those were the first words from Diana Nyad on Monday, after willing her way more than 100 miles to a Key West beach just before 2 p.m. ET, according to CNN.

And aren’t they words we often hear from those who make their dreams come true?

It had been nearly 53 hours since she jumped into the ocean in Havana for her fifth try in 35 years at completing the dream she had since childhood.

She was 8 years old when she first dreamed about swimming across the Straits of Florida. At the time, Nyad was in Cuba on a trip from her home in Florida in the 1950s, before Fidel Castro led a Communist takeover in Cuba and the country’s relations with the United States soured.

Making her dream a reality was more difficult than she imagined.

“With all the experience I have, especially in this ocean, I never knew I would suffer the way I did,” she told CNN.

At one point, she was vomiting because she had so much salt water in her system and was shivering. She sang lullabies to help her relax.

Her mantra? “Find a way.”

Clearly, we can all learn something from Diana Nyad.

Have you found a way to achieve one of your personal dreams lately? Share it with us here!

Image credit: “Diana Nyad swimming in Manhattan for Sandy relief” by Andrew Dallos/CC BY 2.0