time flies

At 4:30 a.m. the alarm rings. It’s dark outside and the light from my window is the only light visible from the street. The day had finally come; I was going to get my SCUBA diving certification. Little did I know that this day would change my life forever.

Excited and nervous, I raced to get dressed, not noticing that I had put on one blue shoe and one black. I gathered my bulky gear and headed for the car. My father and brother were not far behind with their own heavy loads.

As we drove to San Pedro to get to the boat that would take us to Catalina, our excitement grew. All of the hard work we had done was about to pay off. We were about to reach our goal. As we neared the terminal, the sun began to creep up over the horizon, illuminating the morning sky with its gold and orange colors. We finally boarded the boat and began our forty-minute trip to the island.

The water was cold and choppy. The wind was blowing strong and the swells were large – not good conditions for diving. We got to Catalina and headed for the dive park. After half an hour of suiting up, we were ready to go. We entered the icy-cold, rough water. Once in, we swam about thirty yards out to a buoy to begin our dive. Just as we had finished demonstrating the surface skills required for certification, my dad began having chest pains. At first, he tried to hide it and say that he was all right, but the knife-sharp pains eventually took over. At this point our instructor made the decision to take him ashore. My brother and I were left alone holding onto the rope waiting and watching. When the instructor pulled my father out of the water, we could see him beginning CPR. My younger brother was hysterical and in tears. I had to be the strong one, assuring him that everything was going to be all right. After what felt like an hour, a woman came to help the two of us back to shore. By the time we got there, the ambulance was on its way. I was never able to speak to my dad again. He had died of a massive heart attack.

I often wish I had had the opportunity to say so many things to my dad. I knew that from that moment on, my life would never be the same. I went back to school the next Monday, not missing a day and decided to dedicate my life to living each day to it’s fullest and making my dad proud of me. Six months after his death, I completed my SCUBA certification.

This happened 13 years ago today. I wrote it about two years after the fact, and I don’t know if I could describe things any better today.