Scuba Do

Sandy and "Calypso," a friendly grouper. Photo by: Sandy Klim

By Sandy Klim

Sitting at the bottom of a pool, I look at my fellow classmates. There’s a couple of “kids” around 16, a 30ish fellow and me—a writer in her 40s wondering when the heck we’re going to be heading back to the surface for some “real” air.

When my 15-year-old daughter Sarah decided to get certified for scuba diving and wanted me to “buddy” with her, I thought, I can do this. She went to scuba camp and came home bubbling from the experience. But then, with aspirations of a career in marine biology, Sarah’s always been fearless in the ocean.

I take my classes in the evening after work. For a little more motivation, I’m heading to Turtle Cay in the Bahamas for some real diving after my certification. That is, if I get certified.

Under our dive master John’s patient instruction, we take our masks off underwater, share air and practice a host of other rigors known as “skills.” We’ve already completed the academic portion of the class. You must pass a written test for certification. I haven’t sweated this much since college.

Now, we’re in the pool. At first, the whole breathing underwater thing is foreign. I keep having to remind myself to breathe. The scuba suit and tank on my back seem cumbersome.

Our “open water” (non-pool dives) is the underwater portion of the test. If I complete four dives in two days, I am officially a scuba diver.

We dive at Weekie Wachee, FL, home of the famed mermaids. After our dive, I have a greater appreciation for these aquatic athletes.

For our final two dives, we head four miles out to a wreck in the Gulf of Mexico. I dive to 60 feet, all the time performing various “skills” for our instructor as part of the final exam. And then, we are done. I am officially a PADI-certified diver. But let’s just say, I’m no Jacques Cousteau.

In the Bahamas, I have a life-changing experience. Still tentative as a newbie diver, I go through the diving skills in my mind as I enter the water. And then it happens. As the panorama of intense colors from the reef and marine life surround me, I suddenly realize why people do this. It’s a whole new world. Breathing suddenly becomes natural. The tank, no longer an albatross on my back, now seems easy to maneuver in the water.

When I first talked about diving, everyone certified raved about it. In classes, I honestly didn’t get it. Now, I do. I suppose it’s a bit like walking on the moon, a rare opportunity to explore a whole new world I couldn’t appreciate from the surface. Considering getting certified? My advice, just dive in.

Editor-in-chief, AAA Going Places
letters@aaagoingplaces.com

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