Divemaster training

   Today I officially began the Divemaster program through Sam's Skin n Scuba in Independence, with whom I traveled to Roatan last month. Who'd have thought back in the frigid Sarasota bay back in February 2010, when I became certified--and while the very idea of diving still terrified me--that I'd be here. KC divers have a saying, which is that Sam could sell ice to an Eskimo. That's true. Sam says, "I may be crude, but I damn sure can teach Scuba." And that is also true. What he does best, though, is assemble a group of fantastic people and talented instructors who make every experience so fun that you naturally can't wait to continue.

   And whatever it is about me that people pick up on that lets them know I'm a leader, Sam & his crew hit me up in Roatan and enticed me to cross the threshold into the professional track of diving. The first step is becoming a DM, which is a leadership role--your focus shifts from yourself to your companions at this level. It's estimated that less than 1% of the population dives, and fewer than 1 in 10 achieve the DM level, and probably even fewer than that in the good ol' landlocked Midwest. It's an achievement just to be asked to enter the program, a well as an honor and a responsibility.

   I know that I will learn critical skills to keep myself and others safe in the water--but more importantly, this is another step in my life's learning and leadership journey. Hard work in store for the next six months, but lots of fun too. And I'm excited to see where this new path will take me...

I've been tricked!

   Tonight after my swim lesson I stopped at the store, then came home to assemble a nice plate of food. I headed out on the deck to sit and enjoy a glass of wine. The dogs joined me outside. The sun was setting and it was a little cooler, and actually quite pleasant. (Any lingering unpleasantries would soon be erased by wine.)

   I sipped and enjoyed some cheeses and crackers. Aki ran up to me and dropped the wiffle ball at my feet. I flung it toward the far corner of the yard. (A little crab on the next cracker...)

   Aki hurried back excitedly with the ball and tossed it at me. I threw it again, as hard as I could. She flew after it. She looked so happy. (Another sip of wine. Some cheese? A slice of salami? Don't mind if I do...) She scooped it up and raced back to me.

   This time I stood and walked down the couple of steps, and really put some heat on it. Aki was really enjoying herself!

   And apparently so was Taylor. As I turned to head back up the steps I saw him in my chair, polishing off the last of the good stuff, leaving only a spread of blank crackers on the plate. I'd been had.

   It seemed so perfectly orchestrated that I almost think they planned it out in advance, like a couple of wolves. Or velociraptors. Who says dogs are dumb?

Corkscrew

   "Courage is not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear."   — Nelson Mandela

   It's a remarkable feeling when you learn something you never thought you'd be capable of. As I've mentioned before, I've been afraid to try swimming since I was a child... when Kelley & I lied to Mom in order to get out of the swimming lessons in which she had enrolled us. We told her that we knew how to swim and it was too easy. (Ha!) So I waited until I was 34 to try again, mostly because I was compelled to try Scuba. I just had to learn to swim 200m.
   My first teacher was great, giving me all the basics. And Delissa has been amazing, building on that and making it all seem easy. Today she improved my freestyle yet again and evaluated my breaststroke—which she said looked entirely natural, and that I was one of the best of anyone she's ever taught. Even if it's an exaggeration, it was nice to hear! Then she proclaimed that she was going to teach me to flip forward and turn off the wall. That was about the time my heart stopped.
   I explained to her that I've tried before, in my first lessons and on my own, and that I was fairly terrified by it. I could somersault while holding my nose, but as soon as I tried it without that, I sucked down so much water and started choking. It was scary and unpleasant.
   She was unphased and said, "Let's try it. Swim up to the wall, dive down, push off the wall and corkscrew your body upright, dolphin-kicking, then switch back to freestyle. Hold your nose if you have to."
   It sounded complicated. I swam toward the wall, diving down, flipping, and ending up perpendicular to where I was supposed to land, with no wall to kick. Holding my nose was throwing me off completely. I attempted it a few more times, and got a little better each time. Our time was up and Delissa left. I was determined to practice a little more.
   Maybe having a pair of eyes on me was making me nervous, because I tried it three more times, then finally got up the nerve to let go of my nose. And you know what? I didn't die. And it gave me confidence. I tried it again and again until I could do it! Okay, not very well. But enough that I knew I'd have it in no time.
   I have my next lesson Monday night, and I can't wait to surprise her, though I'm sure she won't be half as surprised as I was myself. Most of my life I've been too tentative about things that intimidated me. No more. It's so fun and empowering to life without fear, and I'm learning that I can do anything when I set my intentions and work hard at it. And that feels amazing.

   I ran across this poem today by accident... or maybe not by accident?

Sweet Freedom
Imagine being free from worry. Imagine being free from the grip of fear.

Think of all that you could accomplish. Think of how much more energy and enthusiasm and creativity you would have.

In fact, you can be free from the worries and fears. You can be free from them in an instant if you choose.

For worry is your own creation. Fear is nothing more than a response you have chosen.

Freedom is sweet, and energizing and powerful. Know that you can be free whenever you choose, and the fresh, empowering breeze of freedom begins to waft throughout your whole life.

This is a beautiful day and you are magnificently blessed. Free yourself to experience the richness of it all.  — Ralph Marston

Learning to Fly

   I had my second swim lesson with Delissa tonight at Prairie Life Fitness Center, and it was every bit as good as the first. This may be the best 50 bucks I've ever spent! (I purchased a deal from livingsocial for 8 private 30-minute lessons.) In the first, she taught me how to improve my arm stroke for the freestyle, giving me more speed and power with less effort. Honestly if this is all I had learned I would have been satisfied. I improved in the first 5 minutes of the lesson, and any nervousness I had melted away instantly.

   Tonight, she had me practice my arms some more, and taught me how to breathe on both sides. I had learned to breathe on my left side when I took lessons nearly two years ago, but my subsequent attempts to learn to breathe on the right resulted in me sucking down half the water in the pool and thinking, "Screw this!" Delissa taught me in about 30 seconds.

   Then she taught me the side stroke, which she said will be useful when I try a triathlon, because it will allow me to rest a bit as well as give me a better vantage point to assess the other swimmers, cutting to the left or right to take advantage of any available space. And she told me that they are beginning tri training sessions this fall. Bingo.

   I swam for 40 minutes which left me breathless but feeling on top of the world. I might actually be good at this someday! If you had told me 3 years ago that I'd not only be swimming now, but that I'd LOVE it and feel natural in the water, I'd have said you were crazy. Learning something new is the best feeling ever—especially when you weren't sure you had it in you.

   This confirmed what I learned through snowboarding this winter: a private lesson is the way to go. Focused instruction and dogged determination.

   Speaking of dogged, I headed home to walk the doggies, who have been missing me too much since I've been traveling lately. They have started to become destructive for the first time ever. Recent casualties: Ben's flip flops, a magazine, the newspaper, and a pen. Then they got into the clothes basket Monday night while I was at yoga and destroyed two pairs of Calvin Klein underwear. @#*!!! I came home just in time to stop them from killing two bras. Somebody needs some exercise!

   So we went on a brisk 2-mile walk, our usual route around Strang Park. It wasn't so hot this afternoon, I was still damp from swimming + shower, and the breeze felt fantastic. The dogs were beaming the whole time... I guess we all were! As we rounded the western edge of the park, I heard chirping and turned around to see 2 juvenile robins perched on low branches, just learning to fly. Their mother was nearby, giving them encouragement, and they were taking short trips to test out their wings.

   It made me think about how badly I wish I had learned to swim when I was a child—I could have been enjoying it all these years! But then I reminded myself that it would have robbed me of the sublime satisfaction I have from learning it now. And though it only cost me 50 bucks, that's worth more than money could ever buy.

My History with Swimming

   I made these posts back in 2009 during my first lessons, and while I was still doing more drawings than photos on my blog. I'd love to get back to that someday...

Public Humiliation

The Crawl

The Drink

Jensicle