I am in Redmond WA (Microsoft HQ) this week for meetings. I am staying in one of my favorite hotels - Residence Inn Marriott at Redmond Town Center. This hotel has some very nice features. In fact it has most of what I look for in a hotel. Nice clean, comfortable room with a desk for me to work at. Free wi-fi. Free breakfast which I fully intend to enjoy in the morning. Or should I say "I intend to fully enjoy?" It also has almost everything one needs to cook their own meals. Two burner stove, microwave, sink, refrigerator, dishes, pots and pans and of course a dishwasher to clean it all up. it is also a block away from a mall with a bunch of nice restaurants. I suspect that most people who stay here are on expense accounts so I am not sure how much all this cooking stuff gets used but you never know.

The hotel also has a swimming pool and hot tub. The hot tub was where I was sitting (trying to relax away the headache from the long flight out here) that inspired this post. In the pool were four children, the mother of two of the children and one grandmotherly looking woman. They were playing Marco Polo (a version of tag commonly played in swimming pools). Along the side of the pool were about 8 older people and the parents of the other two children. They were all in  street clothing and seemed to be enjoying watching the children and the two adults playing in the pool. But still they were observing. The two adults in the pool were participating.

Very often we have the choice between watching and participating. There is nothing wrong per se with watching but as a choice I want to be participating. I think this is especially true with regards to activities with young people. Oh sure there are times when the kids should be playing just among themselves and one has to be aware of those times. But I think it is great when there is fun that involved multiple generations. I value the snowboarding trips and surfing lessons I take with my son. I enjoy taking my nephew and niece for kayak rides on the lake. These are good times. I don't want to miss them. I hope one day to be a grandfather myself. I want to do things with my grandchildren and not just watch them from afar.

"Getting in the pool" requires a couple of things beyond the will to do it though. It requires a certain amount of health and physical fitness. I think that this later part is where a lot of people miss the opportunities. It is so easy to fall out of shape and so hard to get back into it. I'm an example of that. Watching these people play in the pool reinforced my commitment towards getting into better shape now so that I can still "get in the pool" in years to come.