It’s Never Too Late to Learn How to Swim

Vijaya Srivastava, who lives in the San Francisco Bay Area, took her first swimming lesson at age 68. She’s now a daily swimmer.

“It’s Never Too Late” is a new series that tells the stories of people who decide to pursue their dreams on their own terms. Vijaya Srivastava’s first 68 years had been resolutely land-based. She walked the Berkeley Hills in the San Francisco Bay Area, spent time with her young grandchildren, volunteered at the library. None of this required submersion in water, which suited her fine, what with water being terrifying. Fear of drowning was a big issue. Growing up in India, she never had access to swimming pools. By the time she moved to the United States, the idea of backstroking to and fro simply didn’t occur to her. Then one day her physician mentioned that regular laps would improve her health.