Aronson Francis-Mitchell: Swimming in the Sun

      Swimming in the Sun 

Aronson Francis-Mitchell has had a life in many places. He has a laid-back, friendly demeanor and goes with the flow. 

Aronson is originally from Trinidad, where he was born. He was the second child out of a family of 3 children, with one older brother and one younger sister. He immigrated to the United States (the state of Florida) with his parents when he was very young at the age of four. He only lived in the warm climate of Florida for 3 years until he was seven years old. At seven, his family moved again, this time to Baltimore, Maryland. He lived in Baltimore until recently when he moved to Frostburg, Maryland for his college education. He is currently a sophomore.

When describing his parents, Aronson discussed how when he was young, they were at first very strict, but slowly became less strict as they eased into an American approach. Aronson remarked that to his parents, he and his siblings, “Were all trials. I was trial number 2.”

When describing the cultural differences between his parents’ homeland and the United States, Aronson briefly paused to look down and think. After pondering it a little, he quickly jutted up with a wry smile and said, “In the morning they can talk real loud.” He described how his parents are more open to talking to strangers and how that habit can sometimes make him a little uncomfortable.

Aronson has only visited Trinidad twice so far. He said it was a wonderful climate, but there wasn’t much he found interesting to do there. He said that he just ended up sleeping a lot while he visited.

His grandmother does sometimes comes to visit his family here in the U.S. He said that his grandmother is, “Always on the move.”

During middle-school Aronson played a bit of clarinet and the piano. He explained how his father always emphasized the arts and music, how it made someone a more well-rounded person. Aronson laments how he wished that he continued to play a musical instrument longer. He then spoke about some of the college marching band videos that he likes to watch, and described one Youtube video in detail. It was the University of Miami performing their rendition of “Get Lucky”. After explaining the video, Aronson warmly shook his head and said, “I thought it was the best thing ever.”

In high-school Aronson was part of the high-school swim team. Relaxed and patiently reminiscing, he described his memory of swimming, and his choice to join the team. He stated that he genuinely enjoyed swimming and how it differed from other sports.  Aronson explained how when he swam he, “needed time to get into the groove.” Some other sports he looked at didn’t offer this approach.

When asked about some of his early formative years in Florida, Aronson displayed a fond and reminiscent calmness. His eyes slowly lifted up from his clasped hands towards the window in front of him, watching the sunlight flicker across the trees. He said that he much preferred warm, sunny days.

In the future, Aronson thinks he wants to go to graduate school. He isn’t completely sure though, and when explaining his choice he said, “Old people love to ask you about those things.” If he does move on to graduate school, he would want it to be somewhere warmer. “In a warmer place”, Aronson said he wouldn’t mind being “a fish out of water.”