A SMALL L-SHAPED POOL

At 9 years old, my parents offered me the opportunity to stay at a boarding school in the capital, promising quality education that my hometown schools couldn’t provide. Initially, I hated the idea of living away from my parents, so I declined it with no hesitation. It only took my parents one sentence to convince me, “the school has a swimming pool.” My fascination with bodies of water has always been apparent, especially swimming pools. Although silly, I reason it as a consequence of my astrology; having been born a Scorpio, that makes me a part of the water signs.  

I remember the first steps that I took, as I walked in the tall red doors of the school, very vividly. The day was bright and gleaming, but the atmosphere was filled with melancholy. It meant that I was no longer a free kid running around my hometown but someone who must adhere to a strict set of rules at all times. The school was hidden in the silence of the valley, far away from all the noise of the city. Tall hills towered over its body which was the only glimpse of the outside world that the students could get. While secluded and sometimes suffocating, I later realized that the surrounding nature was actually a blessing in disguise. During the winter, you could see the mountain Langtang as clear as crystal. Thousands of miles afar yet it would seem so close. In the evenings, some of the most beautiful pink skies would appear above the school. The compound was massive; one could lose their way trying to find the bathroom as they’d have to take the stairs down a slope. The architect was quaint and repetitive, all the buildings resembled each other. The dining hall, dorm rooms, and the shower were all very spacious filled with loud students, however they were the loneliest of the places. On the highest part of the institute was a giant bell, like the ones that you see at Hindu temples, whose ring would allocate what time it was, breakfast, lunch, supper, start of a class, end of a class, and henceforth. Everything that a child could dream of, two football grounds, an in-door and an out-door basketball court, a park, a BMX track, and most importantly a swimming pool, the school had it all, yet it would always feel like something was missing, something like home.

I finally put on a smile on my long face when it was time to dive my juvenile body into the small L-shaped pool. A strong wave of confidence hit me as my physicality put trust in my emotions, telling me that somehow my hands and legs could dance in a synchronized rhythm through the ripples of water. Without a thought, I let my body take its own course and dove headfirst into the pool. Suddenly, I could feel the gravity pull me down as I longed for a gasp of air. The voices around me mumbled and my visions blurred while time moved haltingly. My limbs were flapping but it caused no movement. I tried to signal for help, but Ms. Sony seemed pretty impressed with my underwater skills considering that she gave me a thumbs up. It was only after a few minutes of me freezing in a spot that she realized that I wasn’t actually good at holding my breath but that I was drowning. She then hurriedly rushed to pull me out of the water and saved me from the stupid mistake that I had made. I breathed like a newborn fresh out of a mother’s womb, yet it still didn’t stop me from putting back my goggles on.