Swimming | Teen Ink

Swimming

November 5, 2023
By Anonymous

A breeze passes and she shivers. Goosebumps crawl over every patch of skin open to the air. Slowly she raises her arms above her head and dives. The first touch of cold, ice water quickly finds her, sending her into another set of goosebumps. Freezing, she starts kicking in a hopeless effort to warm herself up. Lap after lap she swims, until each movement flows into one and she’s become the water, she is the water. The rush of each and every stroke fills her insides  Until her breath is stolen, grasped right out of her mouth, by none other but herself. As she races with exhilaration through the water, she finds herself at peace, slowly halting to a stop. “I’ve done it. I’ve done it,” she whispers to herself. Taking a deep breath, she relaxes her muscles, waiting to start up again.   


The author's comments:

Intro: My set piece begins with a slow start, and creates anticipation for the comforting tone that follows as the character becomes more comfortable in the water. As this set piece continues, I tried to use imagery to express the sensations of swimming and enhance its characteristics. Imagery is a visually descriptive or figurative language used to describe or imagine certain scenarios. I also tried to use a couple metaphors to create the sensation of swimming. A summary of my set piece would be a girl preparing herself to swim, and as she starts to swim she feels unfamiliar to the water. The longer she swims, though, the more comfortable she gets in the pool. I think my favorite part of my set piece is when the character begins to swim and becomes so comfortable in the water that it feels as if she becomes the water. 


Similar Articles

JOIN THE DISCUSSION

This article has 0 comments.