Tuesday, May 25, 2010

“Caging My Fears” by Claire McDonald

Nothing can send someone an adrenaline rush when you’re swimming in the ocean and you think you see a shark fin in the distance. So, how do you think I felt floating in a cage with an undersized wetsuit staring one in the face? Interesting, to say the least.

Sharks have never been my cup of tea. Even when I was younger on beach trips, I was always paranoid that I would get eaten. When I heard we were going to go shark cage diving, there was a huge part of me that had absolutely no desire to go, and seeing that I had an option, I highly considered skipping. However, I knew it was something I was going to regret if I didn’t do it. After a 5 AM wake up call and a two-hour bus ride, it was time to go. I was anxious on the boat ride out, and made the ultimate decision that I would go in the first group, just to get rid of my anxiety. It ended up being the best decision ever.

I put on an incredibly smelly wetsuit and snorkel and hopped in the cage. Almost immediately, one of the members of the crew told me to go under and look straight ahead. Not even ten feet ahead of me was the biggest great white shark I had ever seen. Granted, I don’t think I’ve actually ever seen one in person, but it was still huge. For the next twenty minutes or so, I saw sharks up close and personal. The crew even drew the shark in so close that I could almost feel its tail whipping towards me. Needless to say, I’m so glad I faced my fear and took advantage of this opportunity. If given the chance, I would definitely do it again.


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