Young, and brave

Exploring the Deep End,

Six years of age

Clinging onto the edge

Cold, wet stone,

Fingers starting to slip

The danger unknown;

Just a fun Summer trip

My grip let go,

Too sudden to cry out

Plunging into the cold depths;

Crystal water silencing my shouts

The stinging of the chlorine in my eyes,

As I grasp without purchase for the light;

The bright Oakland Sun in the sky

Reflecting through the suffocating coffin of water, 

In which I thought I would die

Lifetimes passed in seconds,

Eternity died that day

And by my grandfather’s grace,

From Death’s cold embrace, I was saved

Disregarding my dignity, because I had almost drowned

Salty tears mixed with chlorine-water on my face

Lungs burning, throat raw, surrounded by concerned frowns

None of those mattered; I was lost, and now found

And by the resilience only a child can display,

I was learning to swim the very next day