Dreams

Have you ever dreamed of scuba diving in Australia? I have. There was, somehow never the perfect time to fulfill that dream of mine. Years past, I became a wife, a mother and a teacher. I was so busy with my life that I almost forgot about my longing to swim in an ocean so clear and blue amongst sea turtles, corals and fish so colorful and unusual. In 1990, I decided to wait no more, I was about to turn forty in August and did not want to find more reasons not to go. I booked a trip to Cairns/Queensland Australia for a period of two weeks. Being there was everything I had dreamed of, the water was so clear, so cool and so cleansing. The coral reef was a breathtaking experience, the colorful fish many of which  I had never seen or heard of, the deep silence of the ocean, the baby sharks and sea turtles left me in awe. I had stepped into a world I did not know existed, left on its own, it was perfect and complete.

Moving forward to 2014. I was now living in the U.S.A and was remarried. My daughter who lives in Sweden decided to visit and celebrate with us my fifty fifth birthday.  The three of us (my husband, my daughter and I) decided to go to the Bahamas and spend a week there. The flight that started in the wee hours of the morning was uneventful and pleasant. We stayed in a resort on the beach.

The eve of my birthday, my daughter made reservations for me to swim with the dolphins . This had always been a dream of mine. On August the 19th, a bus took my daughter and I to another part of the island. Once there I followed a team of instructors who explained to me and the other participants what we needed to know before getting into the water and interact with the dolphins. I was so excited and a bit nervous too. This was so new to me. Under the supervision and guidance of the instructors we did some tricks, got hugged and kissed by our mammal friends. The final experience was to have two dolphins pull me and “fly” a few feet above the water before landing. I loved every moment of this experience.

It was now time to leave. My eyes caught the eyes of “my dolphin” as he was coming closer to the edge of the pool. I asked if I was allowed to say one final goodbye to him. I put my hand on his head and we stayed that way for quite awhile. I kissed him, thanked him and left.

In the summer of 2019, my daughter and her boyfriend were visiting friends in Texas. We were to meet there to spend sometime together and celebrate my 60th  birthday.

There was a time when I used to be so afraid of heights that I would get into a panic attack when I had to go down a hill and could not see the bottom, or walk on a hanging bridge eight feet high above the ground. It took many years and many tears before I was able to overcome that fear.

August 22nd on a hot sunny Texas day my daughter asked me if I was still into skydiving, I smiled and said yes. She booked a time for me for that same day.

Once  at the airport the staff gave me a big stack of papers to read before I signed the contract to skydive in tandem. The bottom line was that I could end up dead during the experience. I signed the papers and got ready to meet my instructor. Was I scared you would asked and the answer is no. I was cool as a cucumber. I got dressed, put on the parachute all the while the instructor was telling me what I needed to do while on the plane and then in the air. And off we walked towards that perfectly functioning plane. Some several thousand feet later, the instructor and I stood up, got closer to the open door and then he firmly pushed me. There I was, glued to him high up in the air suddenly realizing where I was. A few feet down, he told me to release the parachute, which I did.

Wow what a view it was.

While flying I remember feeling this excruciating pressure pain in my ears that I could not do anything about. Dizziness was also there because I/he was steering the parachute to the left and right every so often. Landing was smooth and perfect.

I had made it.

I was smiling inside out. I knew I had conquered my fear of heights and there was no reason to be afraid anymore. Being respectful was a healthy attitude to keep though.

I could take more lessons and one day skydive by myself if I want to. Who knows.

Be Bold, Be Fearless and Follow your dreams wherever they take you. Life is an adventure live it to the fullest.