Diving

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https://drive.google.com/uc?export=view&id=15D-mEXewGjBoAjCP_QxXQN2beaVJbx1S
By Angie Bromeland

 Each time Larissa dove, she felt revived. It was the closest thing to flying she could do. It gave her such a thrill. Of course, it wasn’t always this way. When she was younger, she needed to be taught water safety and how to swim. She didn’t learn to dive until she was 9. Now, she was a diver. She could already do a forward tuck and pike, and was now working on her backward twist.
Larissa was so lively. When she put all that energy into diving, it made people gasp with amazement. She was both graceful and powerful. Larissa was lucky that her family had a pool with a diving board, so she was able to practice often—even when she wasn’t in swim and dive class. At first, her mom chafed about her practicing so much, but she knew how much joy it brought Larissa.
One day, as her mom sat at the pool, watching Larissa, she remembered how free she felt the first time she learned how to dive. She smiled and closed her eyes. She could easily picture the day. Her memory traveled back to being 12 as she relived the moment she dove into the water with barely a splash. Larissa swam to the edge of the pool in front of her. Droplets of water strafed her mom’s arm as Larissa propped herself up on the edge and giggled.
“What are you thinking about, Mom?” Larissa asked.
Her mom opened her eyes and laughed at herself. “Oh, gosh. I was just getting lost in a memory, honey.” She reached out and touched Larissa’s dripping wet hair. “I was remembering what it was like to want to live in the water, like you.”
They smiled at each other, like they were sharing a secret. Then Larissa climbed back onto the diving board and dove again.

Comments

Unknown said…
I love it! And the picture too. You are a fantastic writer!
June 18, 2019 at 1:05 PM
Unknown said…
I love it! And the picture too. You are a fantastic writer!
June 18, 2019 at 1:05 PM
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