It’s Friday night, and I’m at the Northwestern pool like any normal day on NASA (Northwestern Aquatics Swim Association) Wildcat Aquatics. The other girls and I have finished up our high school season, and we are back at practice with the boys for about two weeks before their season starts during Thanksgiving break. Our six available lanes, as a result, are super crowded with about six or seven people per lane.
After our somewhat chaotic warmup, we swim over to the middle lane where our coach, Alessio, stands on the bulkhead to call out the next set. He tends to speak quietly, so we huddle in close to listen.
“Six 25s drill: two bodyline kick, two power, two choice,” He begins.
Classic workout-practice-type songs (i.e. Pitbull, Rihanna, Kanye) play from the big speaker brought everyday by one of the girls as we get settled in around our coach.
Suddenly, “I Will Always Love You” by Whitney Houston comes on the speaker. It plays unusually loud, despite someone having turned the volume down so we can hear Alessio better. People start giggling a little as this “workout” song punctuates the words of the set we have to memorize.
If I should stay
I would only be in your way
So I’ll go, but I know
I’ll think of you every step of the way
It starts out somewhat sad, the music slow and almost heart-wrenching as Whitney Houston’s beautiful soft voice overtakes Alessio’s. Even he is amused, pretending to ignore it, but smiling all the same as the most immature ones of us cackle profusely. I share a glance with my close friend, Zara, and we both burst out laughing. As the music builds slowly, Houston’s voice getting louder and louder, he’s drowned out even more.
We both know I’m not what you, you need—
And I———— will always love you—————
I will always love you
Her amazing voice, hitting all the right notes and pitches, is nothing to laugh at, but the sheer absurdity of the situation is. The song continues as Alessio finishes up, trying hard to keep a straight face and we all grin and chuckle stupidly waiting for him to have a funny reaction. One last beat drop in the song, and we all completely lose it as we paddle back to our lanes.
And I—————— will always love you
I will always love you
I will always love you
The song finishes when we start the set, but Alessio immediately restarts it on the speaker.
My friends and I turn to each other, gleefully shake our heads, “That was so funny! Wait, what is he doing?”
Alessio had grabbed the large box speaker and rested it on his shoulder. He turns the volume all the way up, and jams out to the tune.
And I will always love you
I will always love you
He walks around the pool like that for a while, occasionally putting the speaker right next to someone’s ear in between laps. They’ll look up at the sudden deafening speaker, confused, then immediately start laughing as Alessio pretends to run away like a child in trouble. It’s silly. and fun, and puts a smile on everyone’s face. It was just a little moment, insignificant to an outsider, but something I will never forget, something that sums up a lot of my time on club swimming that I will miss dearly next year at college. I’ll never hear “I Will Always Love You” the same, but now I know it really is the perfect practice song.