I am often cold. Like, last summer I started carrying a blanket to restaurants to lay on my lap because I got so tired of eating dinner while freezing. I’m that kind of cold. So it seems pretty crazy that I would do a Polar Bear Plunge down the Shore. But I did. And it wasn’t my first time.
A few days before the end of last year, I told Joe I thought we should run into the ocean on New Year’s Day. He knew exactly what I was talking about because we had done it once before – in 2019. At that time, I had gotten the idea weeks before New Year’s, after hearing former newscaster Lu Ann Cahn talk about her “year of doing the new.” For 365 days, she chose to do something out of her comfort zone every day, and it changed her life. I wasn’t going to take on a year-long challenge, but it was right before we would become full-on empty nesters, and I thought a shock to our system would be good.
In the days leading up to that 2019 plunge, I was terrified and not sure I would be able to do it. I felt I had to make the effort, though, mainly because I had written a column committing to it and didn’t feel I could cop out. In the end, I ran into the water. The cold took my breath away, but somehow I made myself keep running.
I later discovered taking that plunge did something Lu Ann said it would do – reset my brain. I filled the months that followed with things I had never done before. I took yoga at the Philadelphia Art Museum, tried beet salad (that was a big deal for me) and painted our walls navy blue. It became a year of adventure and excitement.
But that year ended by turning into 2020. And as you know, that began a whole different kind of reset.
So when I got a press release about this year’s plunge, I knew what we had to do. We got in the car early on Jan. 1 and drove to Atlantic City. The temperature was in the 40s, so it could have been worse. Then again, as we walked onto the sandy beach, it started to rain.
The people who show up for the plunge are an interesting crowd. Many are in costumes – a shark here or there, a mermaid or two, and then just colorful, crazy outfits, all of which stay on for the plunge. There are young people who I think haven’t ended their New Year’s Eve celebrations, and moms holding towels for their kids – usually small groups of boys. Then there are people like Joe and I, adults standing in their bathing suits waiting for the whistle to blow. Both years, I wondered why they were there.
I know why I was there. It was a chance to show myself that things can (and do) change. I can change. And the change can be challenging and a complete shock to your system, but also exhilarating and meaningful. Because eventually, the cold goes away, and you look back and realize you made it – you accomplished what you set out to do, even though you were certain it was going to be really, really hard. Which it was.
Only time will tell what difference this makes for the rest of the year. It’s funny, I don’t expect it will do anything (I didn’t last time either). I’m still glad I took the plunge though. Because even though there is nothing I hate more than being cold, I know that if I have to, I can plunge myself into icy water. I can place myself in uncomfortable situations. And I can get myself out of them. I can catch my breath and keep moving.
