Teen's Talk - Time to Dry Off

The Grand Rapids Times
April 25, 2008

Teens Talk
By Marcel Gamble

Learning how to swim was a challenge that I wasn’t enthused about as a child. Every time my family went out on the lake my brothers and sisters swam while I sat in the boat and watched.

Eventually, my days of sitting on the boat came to an end when my dad became impatient with teaching me how to swim and he threw me off the boat. As I was struggling and panicking in the water, I realized that it was up to me to get back to the boat where I knew I would be safe.

I wanted to get back to safety so badly that I was touching the back of the boat before I realized I was actually swimming on my own.

As I near graduation I have come to view the world as an enormous lake and all of us are like beginning swimmers. When we get thrown into the world it is up to us to either learn how to swim, set goals and work to achieve them, drown, or throw in the towel and fail. If someone wants something bad enough, like I wanted safety the day I learned how to swim, a person will “swim” and work to succeed.

As a child I drowned continuously due to my bad choices, but now I swim with my head above water because I have learned to make wise decisions.

This week I would like to thank my parents, Bill and Oscatte Hendler for throwing me into the lake and teaching me how to swim. You have made me devote endless hours to scholarships, my school work and because of this I have made it to the next step in life, graduating from high school.

It’s not time for me to dry off now I am still swimming on my way to college.

This week I would like to especially thank Jamila Goldsmith, Aarie Wade, Jerri Ann Wade, Autumn Smith and the entire Martha Chapter No.1, P.H.A. You have all thrown me out into the lake and introduced me to the world of modeling.

I want to thank you all for your patience, time and generous scholarship. The modeling experience has given me confidence to try new things and it’s because of you that I am able to swim with my head above water.

There is no towel needed because I am going to continue to swim.

I’m going to leave you all with this, Isaiah 25:9; “In this day they will say, surely this is our God; we trusted in him; and He saved us.”