SCUBA Diving - 20th February, 2010
Heavy on my back, the tank was buckled loosely around my waist. I knew that people didn't just sink to the ocean bed once entering the water but the weight I felt told me the concept defied logic. In all seriousness, I felt like a boulder ready to topple into the dark depths. The lead weights underneath my SCUBA tank sat uncomfortably above my hips, gravity and their sheer burden pushed them down against my bones.
Of course, Sam, our instructor showed us the inflatable bladder that was also fastened to our back. It was this that kept us from falling to the cozy homes of clown fish and coral.
"Haaaarp, blub. blub, bulb…TWO!" Sam instructed as he removed and the returned his regulator to his mouth - demonstrating how to clear them.
Needless to say, I felt like a real dick yelling a distorted 'two' into something that strangely resembled a child's dummy.
"Two, two…TWO", I giggled to Steve for good measure. Aha! I'd mastered the skill of not accidentally drowning on the sea floor. Even less seriousness to the exercise was derived foam Steve's remark…
"Don't worry babe, if it makes you feel any better down there, you can say 'pooh' instead".
Within what felt like only seconds, I was in the water grasping a metal bar. In a blur, my burdened body was heaved to the hands of the blue. Released of the pressure and weight of my equipment, I floated on the surface while my fins gracefully rotated to keep me upright. Sam checked my equipment and boosted the air in my vest causing me to bob higher in the water like a cork. I put my regulator in my mouth and waited for Sam to do the rest of his necessary checks. The air in the tank was noticeably cooler than the outside air and each breath came crisp and clean. My mask was successfully 'fog-free' due to the lovely spit particles and I was ready to go.
Slowly the metal bar began to move downwards. Effectively, my firm grip ensured I was taken under with it and unknown fingers released air from my only floatation devise. Casual and almost mocking waves from the dive staff above assured I was going down under.
A mere meter under the surface, the bar stopped and we were encased in an eerie silence broken only by patterned breathing. Staring insistently were a school of silver fish. Their muscle filled bodies propelled them gracefully through the water with not a care in the world. Not at all were they frightened of these masked monsters which had been maneuverer into their space.
Ironically, while I felt strangely out of place in this blue underwater world, the fish, I have no doubt had come to recognise us as part of the scenery. The beautifully polished boat we'd left revealed it's algae encased hull. Two large propellers, along with thin strands of seaweed rotated slowly in the current. I looked to Steve and Sam and returned the okay signal to confirm that indeed I was ok.
Sam instructed us to let go of the metal bar and link arms. Slowly we sank further until our air bladders kept us at a reasonable depth and my world became more and more unfamiliar. I was a keen snorkeler but never before had I had the capacity to remain in that wonder for more than a matter of seconds. Instead, I was gliding to the sea floor taking in slow and steady breaths...
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