Earlier this year, Debi Thomas Hawkins published her first book, Becoming a Mermaid Sister, a memoir about how the sea saved her at a time when she needed it the most. What she did not know at the time of the official publication of the book was that life was about to throw her a curveball that would take many months to recover from – but that is another story. When I saw Debi a few weeks ago, she shared what had happened to her with me, and told me how her memoir got lost in the chaos, how it never even had a proper launch. I was shocked that I did not even know it existed. But I knew how much Debi supports the literary community as a reader and a member of the Friends of the Fish Hoek Library who organise the fabulous Blown Away by Books, and I immediately thought that there was a simple way we could say ‘thank you’ for everything that she has done for all of us. So I bought a copy of Becoming a Mermaid Sister and asked Debi whether I could assist her to organise the launch of this beautiful, inspiring memoir. Luckily, she said yes.

Unsurprisingly, after reading the book, I dreamt all night long about swimming in the sea, and I woke up feeling a longing to head to the nearest beach. I love the sea and I love swimming. Unlike Debi, who grew up in landlocked Zim, I grew up in a country with a magnificent sea and was introduced to its wonders as a small child. Debi moved to the Cape and the seaside only sixteen years ago, and found the courage to begin engaging with the sea only recently – when it was forbidden to do so during the deepest darkness of lockdown. It was a time in her life when she was experiencing the challenges of midlife as a woman and a mother, when she lost her job and income during the pandemic and tried to desperately reimagine herself in the new circumstances. In Becoming a Mermaid Sister, she recalls the disastrous first swim, when she and her husband Roger, aka The Pirate, decided to brave the lockdown regulations and found a secluded spot to go for a forbidden swim. They weren’t caught (not that time!), but Debi was left with “a love bite from the sea” after the adventure. Finding awe and solace in the sea, Debi and her “family bubble” found their Secret Beach and continued to swim. A traumatic arm fracture in her childhood and the resulting loss of full control over her arm made Debi fearful, and simple tasks that most of us take for granted became challenging in the everyday for her. Communing with the sea allowed her to face those fears and find a new side to her already amazing resilience. Meeting other women of the sea who practice cold-water immersion and paddling opened entirely new realms of possibility. They call themselves Mermaid Sisters. Their ethos is “kindness, support, and an unspoken trust circle.” Together, they create a space of safety that allows each member to thrive. Debi’s memoir tells the story of self-transformation that she calls “kick-in-the-butt-mation”. It is the story of how courage allowed her to discover the physical, psychological and emotional benefits of the sea, and it is a celebration of community.

“I am the champion of my life,” Debi says in Becoming a Mermaid Sister. And so she is, and she inspires all of us to become the champions of our lives.

Let’s celebrate this incredible woman and her wonderful book! See you at the Tokai Public Library on 28 November!