From A Diving Board Poem by RIC BASTASA

you climb this certain height
towards the place
where the diving board is situated

you look down
and the pool looks like a square
the people watching you somehow
looking like ants looking at you

and then you stand still
look to the sky
and take a deep breath

you make the last pose
and then jump overboard
there is that feeling of falling
as you stretch your legs
and hold your hips with your hands
you tumble down in the circles
that you are making

and then you stretch your arms and hands
like you are a long pole
and touch the still water at last

you make the splash
and tell yourself in such a short event
this must be death

you plunge down
not touching the depth of the floor
you rise up again
and touch and rub your eyes
you see them and now you realize
this must be life
you tell yourself again