Downstream

Inside there is a snack bar,
shampoo, a small tube of
toothpaste, nuts, a t-shirt –
and there it is, right at the
bottom, my medal. Here is
the proof that I swam in the
London Docks, just as people
have been doing since the
1930s when the oil was so
thick that Kathleen Ralphs
shot through the water during
the PLA Swimming Club
Ladies Championships at
twice her normal speed.