Donnie couldn't go in the deep end of the pool because he still hasn't learned how to float or swim properly in the shallow end yet.
The other kids seemed to effortlessly move from one lesson to the next. He worried that he might be the only one limited to the shallow end.

The YMCA pool must have had half wits tend the pool since the smell of chlorine was stinging and children's eyes were ruby red as they emerged from the pool. Donnie thought, I can't do this anymore. Besides I really hate that they don't let us wear any swimming trunks. Then he just stared down at a rubber coated brick sitting on the bottom of the deep end. The blue brick wiggled, darted and flowed, but the mind knew it was motionless fourteen feet down on the bottom.

The ladder and holding the edge gave a bit of confidence but in a second Donnie could feel the terror of slipping or falling even if a rung of the ladder was just inches away.

On the ride home he looked back at the stark brick building and the vertical red neon sign YMCA but the M and C were dark probably from burned out bulbs. The sky was all pinks and purples when he got home.
"what's for dinner Mom?" Liver and onions, I bet you're really hungry after your swimming lessons, she said. Oh my, your eyes are so red.

When Dad got home Donnie still wasn't hungry, he skidded through some homework watched some TV and went to bed. In the bedroom that was added above the garage, he would stare at the knotty pine eyes saring at him from every imaginable direction. Down the hall he heard the tippytaptaptap of Dads IBM selectric tywritter. Kvetch the Siamese cat walked in and said Mow. She jumped up on the bed and Donnie said, I bet you hate swimming too. With the cat under the covers in a tent between his knees Donnie faded off to sleep.

Staring down at the blue brick, waving back and forth wiggling and waving I want to jump in and pick up the brick and walk around on the bottom of the pool like I've seen other kids do. "why don't you do it?" asked a small Irish man. Because I can't swim. "Why not?" Because I know I'll drown.

"Hmmm, 'av ya tried to breathe the water?" No I can't breathe water thats how you drown. "Aye but av ya even tried?" No of course not, what do you mean? "I mean when you get down there by that ladder over there, grab the brick and try breathen." I can do the ladder alright but. "OK lets see." All right all right, see I can hold on to the ladder just fine. "That's perfect, now can ya put your head underwater?" Sure see?

"Now go down an grab that brick and if ya run outta air jus breathe the water" Thats crazy but I bet I could touch the brick before I ran out of air. "That's great try it!" Underwater the sounds are funny and far away, but like a dart I zoom to the brick. My ears are starting to hurt and my lungs are feeling desperate, yet up close I can hear him say "Breathe laddy breathe". I take a bit of a breathe and astonishingly I can breathe. I can breathe.

There we are both of us sitting on the bottom with the blue brick breathin away. "See I told ya, whenever ya really need to breathe you can do it." This is so great.

Cat whiskers on my nose wakes me up. The clock says 7 AM. I listen for the bus but I can't hear it, so though I'm late, I have a chance to catch the bus.

From that day on Donnie could swim just fine. The deep end was the most fun. But he's still the worst diver ya ever will see. Jump, splat, more often than not.