Taking the Plunge

It was on this Saturday afternoon that I saw my fear right into it’s eyes. I had read and heard umpteen times about the phrase “Darr ke aage jeet hai” (Beyond fear lies victory). On this day, at Malvan, I experienced it..!

All thanks to my colleague Suprajit. An adventure geek himself, he was the one who pushed me into this unusual sport called snorkeling. When he first mentioned it, I read about it on internet and was beginning to feel the nerve. I was feeling anxious, sceptic, unsure and fearful. But with all that, there was another thing lurking in my mind- a desire to just go ahead and do it! Taking the plunge…

When I was all set wearing the diving mask and the snorkel in the mouth, I could hear my heart pounding behind the torso. I finally climbed down through a lifebuoy, my feet not on the ground- I was into the sea surrounded by water– floating.

The guide told me to grip the mouth-piece with my lips, breath through the mouth and put the head inside the water. I just said to myself- “Now no looking back”, and pushed my face right into the waters of the Arabian sea. It was all blueish green. I could see the rays of the sunlight going deep down within. I gasped for air. I couldn’t breath. I pulled my head outside. I had a little glimpse into this blue-green world, and it was scary!

I held the snorkel clung against my mouth, and made yet another attempt. I gasped again. I just couldn’t breath under water. I again pulled my head out of the water. This time I was almost choking for breath. I thought I couldn’t do it. I was tempted to tell the guide, I am going back to the boat, even if you don’t refund my money back.

“Breathe with your mouth…” I could hear the guide say. His words compelled me to stop thinking about the money refund. I realized- I was doing it wrong. I was trying to breathe through nose, and was not blowing through the snorkel. I thought of giving it a third chance.

This time, I put my head inside the water and immediately started blowing through the snorkel. Yes… air was flowing to and fro. I didn’t gasp. I was under water now, for 5… 10… 15 seconds. Yes, I had got hang of it. With a nod, I signalled the guide that I am ready to go.

The blue-green world then slowly began to unfold. I could see colourful corals of different colours waving and swaying besides me. I touched the corals and plucked a few leaves. A little further, hiding behind the corals, I saw an eel. And then the guide pointed his finger towards a fish with black and white strips [Zebra fish] and then several fishes with pointed snouts [Needle fish]. The zebra fish was swimming right infront of my nose, as if saying – “Welcome to our beautiful world!”

And what a beautiful world it was! If I had surrendered to my fears, I would never have had this wonderful experience. When I was back on the boat, I had not only understood, but had actually experienced what it means when they say – “Dar ke aage jeet hai”. 

(17th November 2012, Malvan. For pictures of my Malvan Trip, click here)