A filmmaker captures her grandmother learning to swim at 82. Riding a bike is next.

At 82, Judy Miller was ready to cross a challenge off her bucket list … but not without the help of her granddaughter. 

Judy Miller suited up: swimsuit, goggles, neck stabilizer, and swim cap. She was ready. As she dipped into the pool, her granddaughter Azza sat close by, capturing every moment. “This feels so nice,” Judy said, bobbing with a massive grin. 

When the filmmaker Azza Cohen asked her grandmother to be the star of her documentary Float, she knew she wanted to tell a story of an older person looking forward, not back. Azza had grown up interviewing her grandparents, asking about their childhoods in Chicago and how they got engaged. When she asked her 82-year-old bubbe (Yiddish for grandmother) what was on her bucket list, the answers surprised her — Bubbe wanted to learn how to swim and ride a bike.

“Swimming spoke to me on an emotional level because I think it is scary,” Azza told The New Yorker in a 2023 article accompanying her short documentary. For many, swimming lessons are associated with childhood. “What would it look like to have my bubbe in her wet suit, with her neck brace?” 

So Bubbe set to work. She hired a swim instructor and spent plenty of sessions learning how to float on her back, bob up and down in the water, and turn over comfortably. “Floating feels like nothing … like I’m almost in a cloud,” Bubbe shared in Azza’s documentary. 

Not only did Azza record her bubbe learning something new in her documentary — she also captured an authentic, unabashed, aging body. With pride, Bubbe remarks: “It’s your body — it’s keeping you eating, breathing, sleeping … love it. Love every little piece of schmaltz you own.” 

Now, Bubbe is looking for a swim instructor in the Phoenix area to continue her progress — and promises to make lunch for any willing candidate. DM us on Instagram at @grand.people.longevity (or email [email protected]) if you know someone who could help Bubbe keep floating!

And of course, check out this week’s GrandPeople episode to learn more!

—Kate Rarey. Video by Laura Tejero.

GrandPeople chronicles the stories of older adults living purposeful, fun and meaningful lives.