Hello people.
This is a special post. Well, at least a special one to me. I am gonna write about the most daring thing I have done in my life till now. Recently, back from a short vacation from Tioman Islands, Malaysia with a few friends, I am re-energized to face the rat-race of life once more!
But this trip started with a lot of uncertainties. Tioman "Island" ---> Beach ---> Ocean ---> WATER! Lots of it! (here, I give you guys a quick reference to my hydrophobia) For those who want to write it off as "Bleh! Hydrophobia, Schmydrophobia! It's all in your head!" .... Well it is in my head and it is real! So take a hike! The blog post ends here for you.
So, as I was saying... the uncertain thoughts clouded my mind. Suddenly I went back 15-17 odd years back... picturing in my head my previous unsuccessful attempts at learning swimming in uber-chlorinated pools.
And before we started the trip, we knew we had to have fun. and the only means was to either get pissed drunk on the beach or be in water! To carry the spirit and enthusiasm of vacation along with my friends, I acted it out as something very trivial. But inside, I knew I was gonna face a lot of water and a deep ocean. I re-assured myself somehow that I was gonna be okay. Worst case scenario - I can back out of the 'ocean' fun any time I want to.
So there we were. We reached a small town in Malaysia called Mersing, from where we were supposed to take a ferry ride to Tioman Islands. 2 hours of it! (in my mind: You're gonna be alright. It's just 2 hours. Besides, there are so many people along with you. Don't be a wuss!) The first hiccup was that the Speed Boat stalled midway in the ocean for some god-only-knows technical fault. It was just our ferry and the wide ocean. After 5 irritating hours of stand-still, we finally got to Tioman.
The first day we relaxed. We had booked for a round-island trip for some sight-seeing for the next day. The next day, we all assembled at the meeting point. What I saw was that the ferry guy was handing all the folks a life jacket, a snorkel mask and a pair of fins. I could have chosen not to get the gear. But I said to myself, "All your life, you haven't been this daring! What's the worst that could happen??? You could drown! But if you don't, it would be an experience of a lifetime! So DO IT! Go Ahead! Buckle Up!" And, so I took it thinking that I haven't had such thrills in a long long time. I might as well go ahead with it.
So we set off. We went to a few points on the island seeing waterfalls, beaches.... and then finally the moment came! The boat guy stopped the boat in the middle of the ocean (I guess that's a regular spot that they have for snorkeling). And then, he instructed that we could do snorkeling here. Everybody with their gear ready, jumped off the boat and into the water. I could see people actually enjoying it. So I buckled up, and with my friends urging me to get into water, I did.
I cannot really describe the feeling at that very moment when my feet went under water. The first thought that crossed my mind was "SHIT! I cannot feel any solid ground under my feet!" Eventually I started floating (of course, because of the life jacket) .... I was still apprehensive of my head staying above the water. But then, with some help from my friends, who instructed me on how to breathe underwater with the snorkeling mask ON, and a few other instructions, I managed to finally snorkel for some time. It was one of the most beautiful sights I have ever seen in my life. The sea life. The corals. The fishes (big, small, vibrantly colored, graceful movements). It was a sight that reminded me of one of those NatGeo/Discovery Channel documentaries, and here, I was witnessing the same myself! The feeling was exhilarating to say the least!
The point of this blog post is that I realized one thing that day. It is OK to fear something and yet face it. Life isn't all about not having any fears and being rosy and perfect all the time. Sooner or later, everybody has to admit to have some fears and face them. Above all, one should not discard any thing as impossible before giving it at least one try.
I know that my fear for water hasn't really diminished after this experience. I may never get a chance or offer myself voluntarily for a snorkel session. But I faced my fear and came through. It has been a learning experience of sorts. Come to think of it, I am a guy who still recalls the harrowing swimming coaching sessions almost 2 decades ago as if it were yesterday. And since then, who has never tried anything like that. And this time, directly into the ocean. Considering all this, I must say it has been a unique personal achievement for me.
Thus, I can now say..... I CAME, I SAW, I SNORKELED!
