13 September 2008

sink or swim, page 2

page 1

sink or swim. fight or flight.

with a gentle push, i slid down and around the curve of the slide towards the hootin’ and hollerin’ of my classmates. as i approached the water, the sounds blurred with the dry leaves in the wind at the edges of the pool. i hit the water with more crash than splash, instantly muffling life around me. faces disappeared and morphed as i sunk straight to the bottom.

finding yourself underwater is not an ideal locale to realize you don’t know anything about being down there.

i’m down. i want to be up. my mind is racing but my body thrashes slowly. the water feels like a cage around me. i grab at nothing. i can’t right this ship. each beat of my heart explodes in my ears and makes it hard to see or think. i want to scream and not drink water. i can’t. i don't.

i make out the long, slender arms of ms. carnizola breaking the surface towards me. they pull me up and out. i hear talking but my gasps of relief dominate.

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