it was the diving board. that long-nosed patron of thrills had ensared the interest of my 3 year old daughter, annelise. there she was, walking toward the stairs telling me she planned to go off. all i could think to say was, allright…let’s see you do it. she climbed up and i jumped in the water, positioning myself beneath the edge…ready to catch her if she dared. she got half way down the board and turned back… but her mother climbed the stairs and met her… turning her back, once again towards the water. annelise was emboldened by the assistance (she was now reaching up, holding her mother’s hands and walking forward with her), but when she got close to the ledge the cruel mistress of fear swept across her mind…”i afraid” she said. but the moment had gripped her parents, and as luice lifted annelise just a few inches off her feet, i said “drop her down”. i quickly decended beneath the surface of the water and looked up to see the entry. a rush of bubbles as annelise came barreling down thorugh the surface and into the water… her little feet kicking to get her back up as quickly as she could go… i met her just before she made it to the surface, and lifted her upwards. i looked at her face, the moment we were both above water, and she had a big-eyed, scared look… but as we got closer and closer to the edge of the pool, i could feel the fear was leaving. i kept her lifted so her head was well out of the water as i swam her over, and when we got to the ledge, her mother met her as she was scampering out. by the time lucie lifted annelise up into her arms, she was smiling. when she looked at the diving board she had just gone off of, and realized the feat she had just accomplished, she began to beam. she stopped talking about the fact she had gone off the diving board several hours later. one big right of passage down… many more to come.
