Short piece by T

My mom and my sister helped me pack up the car with three>chairs, a blanket, our swim bags which were heavier than an armful of bricks, a warm cozy blanket, my mom's purse, and the camera. We drove to the nearest Subway. Even in the warm weather, I felt chilled and put on my coat. When we walked in, the clerk said, "Got a swim meet today?" With smiles on our faces, we said yes and ordered our usual. In a rush, we walked out and jumped into the car. As I unwrapped the crinkly subway sandwich, a voice came through the car speakers. Alan Goldberg spoke clearly as though he were in the front seat with my mom. I filled the hole in my stomach, although it still rumbled, and listened to Goldberg's soothing voice. Then, I began visualizing my race. "Swim in your own lane." "Be a lean mean swimming machine." "Now is time for all that hard work to pay off." I was ready. When we arrived at the pool, we finished listening to Dr. Goldberg and we gathered up our junk and headed to the pool. Mom chose our spot. My nose filled with chlorine and I quickly immersed myself in the world of swimming. In no time, warm-ups began. My heart was beating faster and faster. In Goldberg's words, I was a good kind of nervous. In the water, a mass of people surrounded me like an amoeba and I felt them pushing my body forward. With each lap, Ilost track of those around me and I became one with thewater. Lap after lap I swam, visualizing schools of dolphin zooming through the water. Before I knew it, warm-ups were over and the meet began with the pretty awful singing of the National Anthem. It was time for my event, the 100 fly. As the first heats entered the water, my sister and I walked to talk to our coach. No surprises there. "Go. Go. Go." It didn't matter that she hadn't given me any real advice, I knew what I had to focus on. We turned and walked toward our lanes and I gave my sister a good luck hug. I stopped behind lane 5, took off my warmups, and revealed my solid blue suit. I carefully placed my goggles on, tugged at my cap to make sure it felt right, and looked down the pencil straight lane, imagining myself gliding through the water. The whistle bleeted and I stepped up on the blocks, standing tall and breathing deeply. I listened. I waited. The sounds of the crowd were muted and I could hear the beating of my heart. The buzzer beeped. I dove in. At first my muscles tensed. But soon they relaxed and it was as if I was swimming on a cloud. Only when I touched the wall did I notice that the competition was miles behind. I turned and looked at my time. A smile erupted on my face.