playfully She pats the couch beside her Come sit with us Salma pauses then crosses over to sit by Mama's side She bounces her legs on the couch still not sure how to bring this up with her mother Mama tightens the shawl around Nora then looks Salma in the Salma Mama says what do you want eye It's now or never Salma thinks Mama you know how much I love Yusra Mardini right Mama nods Of course Over the past few months Mama has helped Salma redecorate her room there are pictures of Mardini standing by the Olympic torch a poster of her bundled up in a towel after winning a qualifying swimming race and a little replica of an Olympic gold medal hanging on the wall Well today I shared a video of her with my class 3
Salma pictures it the swimmer standing proudly at the edge of the pool She doesn't look nervous Like Salma she has light tanned skin with some dimples and birthmarks A wisp of hair chestnut brown just like Salma's escapes her swimming cap Her eyes are the color of honey Salma knows even though Yusra is wearing goggles All my friends loved Yusra Salma insists She remembers her friend Riya turning to her in excitement when the video finished Yusra is so cool She went through so much but now she's thriving It's very common for immigrants and refugees to be successful when given the chance Ms. Singh said Yusra is my new favorite Olympian Ayman added I don't know any other Olympians but she is my favorite for sure 4
Even though she'd seen the video many times Salma's eyes had been glued to the big screen watching her hero doing the butterfly breaking the surface of the water and splashing it in an arc over her head pushing herself forward with purpose I wish I could swim like Yusra Salma told her classmates
