Far out in the lake was a large wooden platform on which stood an improbably high diving board -- a kind of wooden Eiffel Tower. It was, I'm sure, the county's tallest wooden structure and no one had ever been known to jump from it. So it was quite a shock when our teacher, Mr. Milton, announced that he would dive off the high board that very afternoon. Word of his questionable plan was already spreading through town as Mr. Milton swam out to the platform. He was just _ when he got there but even from such a distance the high board seemed almost to touch the clouds. Once at the top, he paced the enormously long board, then took some deep breaths and finally stood at edge. He was going to do it. Several hundred people had gathered at the shore to watch. Mr. Milton stood for quite a long time, then he raised his arms, took one massive bounce and launched himself into a perfect dive. It was beautiful. He fell with perfect style for what seemed minutes. The crowd fell silent. The only sound to be heard was the faint whistle of his body tearing through the air toward the water far, far below. But about three quarters of the way down he seemed to have second thoughts and began suddenly to panic, waving his arms and legs like someone having a bad dream. When he was perhaps thirty feet above the water, he gave up on waving and spread his arms and legs wide, apparently hoping that it would somehow slow his fall. It didn't. He hit the water at over six hundred miles an hour. The impact was so loud that it made birds fly out of their trees three miles away. I don't think he entered the water at all. He just bounced off it, about fifteen feet back into the air. After that, he lay still on the surface, spinning like an autumn leaf. He was brought to shore by two passing fishermen in a rowboat and placed on an old blanket where he spent the rest of the afternoon. Occasionally he accepted small sips of water, but otherwise was too shocked to speak. From head to toe, he was covered with deep red bruises. ... It was the best day of my life. What did the writer think of Mr. Milton's plan to jump from the diving board?
Crazy. Disappointing. Heroic. Confused.