There are a lot of things that have happened this year but the things that stick most in my mind are the people and the adventures I have been on during the year. It is hard to forget the stark beauty of Antarctica and the crystal clear waters lapping up against the ship or having a “wee drop of the water of life,” with Steve Brennan at each landfall. There were penguins and seals that came right up to us and birds that flew down and landed in front of us. Who can forget hearing Neal Peake and Giles Adam retell their encounter with a sea lion or the simple joy in Monica Alonso’s face as she showed her photographs of a mother penguin and her child?
In Indonesia, it was fun watching the group discover that a leaf underwater was not really a leaf or that there was really exciting things to be discovered on the sand and mud flats. It was fun watching the kids discover things underwater on their own and to watch them interact with the local children while playing ball. Perhaps the thing that sticks in my mind most was watching the school children standing in uniforms all along the cliff waiving goodbye to Moniquita Alonso.
During my two trips to Grand Cayman, I watched students blossom and find their way. Yes even technical students can have epiphanies and discover how to dive again with all of their new equipment. We even got to do a night boat dive on a wall, a rare occurrence in Grand Cayman and a dive time that is even rarer for me (Ann is the night diver).
But my memories are not limited to diving in exotic places. It was a real treat to watch David Morris plan and complete his first 100 dives which were all done in his first year of diving. His excitement was contagious and even included a party up at the lake to celebrate the achievement.
There are a lot of memories, experiences and things to be thankful for this year. I am glad that I have been able to open the door to adventure for myself and for other people as well.
Thank you to all of the people who helped create the memories for me! I only wonder what memories I have helped create for them…
Memories……2010
* Full comprehending that Oceanic Ventures would be celebrating its 20th year.
* Getting excited and grateful for a cold weekend in February so I could pack my dry suit and head to 288 * Lake with Team Ice cold to practice with with super thick insulation!!!
* Seeing “penguin” in 288 Lake the last practice weekend.
* Seeing penguins swim past me in Antarctica.
* Taking Snorkeling pictures by an iceberg with Monica and Monica.
* Madison’s “ladder”.
* James completing his Dive Con program and being the youngest ever Dive Con for OVI.
* Taking school supplies to the school in Indonesia and have a concert by the pre-school children.
* Sharing a wall dive with Pat, rafting with Dan.
* Looking at Holland’s awesome frog fish photos after her second dive with an underwater camera.
* Jean’s so appreciate of the dive masters’ hot towels and the “Happy Box”.
* David completing 100 dive his first year of diving.
* A whale and her calf, and the “Pacific Life” jump off the starboard bow of our boat in Costa Rica.
* Hearing that same whale sing on the next dive.
* Being a nervous “mom” as OVI held an event that I did not attend, Diver X’s First Happy Hour.
* Hearing Ashton say, “I have four more classes left for school.”
The year 2010 was a good year for me. I knew I was going to have a shoulder operation and my diving would be limited until I had a full recovery. The operation in over and I am on the mend and looking forward to 2011 and a lot more diving. As a matter of fact water will be a big part of my recovery, paddling a large surfboard and swimming. Barbara and myself were only able to make one dive trip but thats ok we found new friends and we are still in touch with them. Two of our new friends live in Ca. on one lives in Fl. but then I have to say I have never met a diver that I didn’t like. While on our one dive trip Barbara was able to shot some really good underwater photos. If anyone want to stop by the house and see the photos bring your bathing suit and you can have some fun on our Stand Up Paddle boards. We first saw SUP in Hawaii while visiting our son who is now out of the Army. So as you can see we are looking forward to 2011 and making new friends.