After much pulling it finally popped out… a big and black… what?!
But let’s start from the beginning:
My nephew saw it first, floating on the surface: a bright colored cloth among the turquoise Caribbean water.
We were in Punta Cana, cruising along on a small catamaran. The wind blowing our hair, the sea spraying our legs and the beautifully warm sun on our faces.
My brother in-law, and great friend, stopped the catamaran, and we decided to explore. My nephew got a hold of the fluorescent cloth and decided to pull. As he pulled and strained, he was excited and thrilled. He really wanted to find out what kind of fish was at the end of this rope…
He said: “whatever it is, is really pulling, it might be big!!!” -together with the excitement there was a little trepidation in his voice. As a strong teenager he did not want to appear intimidated but his voice betrayed him.
I could tell by the strain in his arms that he was pulling hard. The rope was thick and tight around his hands, and they were getting red and redder…
And then it happened, it finally popped out: a black and rubber thing…
At first we all looked and were confused, it took as a few seconds to figure it out! We were definitely expecting a fish of some sort or a lobster cage… But never what popped out of the ocean: a black flipper, followed by a leg… that is when my nephew freaked and let go of the rope…
We all went silent for a few minutes, the catamaran slowly recovering speed from the wind blowing its sail. Then my brother in-law broke the silent with a small chuckle… and we all exploded in laughter! (nervous laughter at first, and then a full blown out laughter, when we saw the divers safe in their boat).
We later learned that all four divers were OK, just a bit shaken, but definitely OK.
They were doing a first shallow dive and that is why they were all attached to the rope.
During dinner, when we shared the story with the rest of the family, we laughed a lot, at ourselves, our feeling thrilled that we were about to catch something special. We shared how we felt thrilled with excitement, talking about what we would do with the huge fish we caught. And certainly we caught something huge and definitely unexpected!!!
I have to admit that this has made the top list of unusual things that happened to me on a trip. So unexpected and hilarious… we spent hours discussing what had gone through the heads of those divers: the surprise, fear and the stories that we imagined crossed their minds, a boats engine, a huge fish… And yet we most certainly doubt that they ever thought that some curious teenager decided to pulled them out!
Has something like this ever happened to you?
You are going for something, you feel excited, thrilled and really looking forward to the result, the goal…
And then, you find yourself in a totally different situation from the one you imagined or expected!
Life is full of surprises! I don’t know You, but I often miss the opportunity to laugh at myself when I end up in a different place. There have been times in my life when the new event or goal is WAAAAAY better than the one I anticipated, and it takes me awhile to adjust.
Like last Christmas, when we got stuck at the airport traveling to California. I was so upset about the weather and missing our connection that it took me a bit to recover and enjoy the fact that we got upgraded to first class for the reminder of the trip!
Has that ever happened to you?
Life took an unexpected turn and you ended up in a very different place?
And yet, it was much better than the one you headed for?!
I would love to hear your story! I believe that we can inspire and help each other recognize when life is throwing us a curve ball and we need to catch it instead of ducking for safety…
We will surely catch a fabulous opportunity, unexpected and Amazing!
Let’s all figure out how to develop the flexible muscle for newness and surprise!
In spanish we call it: having a “waist” – meaning that you can flex and move, swing with the music, even when it changes rhythm!!!
Let’s dance and celebrate to all the music that life sends our way!!!
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