The waves are coming. The ocean is pissed off. It rolls & heaves, throwing itself on the land, furious that it can't reach further inland. Sometimes she is greedy like that - the hurricane has got her all riled up.
Other times the ocean is flat. Real flat. Flat & shiny like a mirror. When the ocean is like this it appears as tho someone has thrown a switch to turn it off. This flatness usually occurs in the morning. I like to think the moon has calmed her down. Looking off into the horizon at just the right angle I cannot tell where the ocean ends & the sky begins. It is very quiet. Later in the morning the ocean wakes up & realizes she's been sleeping on the job. She throws off some ripples as the day goes along, just to bob the fishing boats up & down. So they don't forget where they are. So they don't forget who's boss.
When the ocean is peaceful, it is time to scuba dive. So far, I have been underwater with a scuba tank 90 times. Sometimes there are different fish than usual. This happens when the ocean is being pissed off somewhere else. The fish come to find the smooth water. They often find the fish traps as well. Out of the frying pan, into the fire, I guess. I don't like to see them in these cages. If I was alone, I would try to set them free. The dive master with us on the dive would not allow it. People have to eat, he would say. What's wrong with mangoes, I would reply. We are underwater, so we don't have the luxury of arguing.
When the ocean is feeling feisty it is best not to dive. After a lot of rain is not a good time either. The visibility can be bad. On one of my worst dives I could not even see my husband next to me. That was a little scary. Times like that you suddenly realize you have 60 feet of water pressing down on you & you are relying on a metal tank full of air & some tubes to keep you alive. Times when this realization suddenly hits you, it is best to remain calm & just keep breathing. Slowly. Deep yoga breaths. You don't want to use up all that air, do you?
Every day I drive past the ocean. Here in the Caribbean the ocean cannot just be called "blue". You need to take the 120 pack of Crayola Crayons & choose all the colors from the palest green on up to the deepest purple - these are the colors of the ocean I can see. I try to remember to let it take my breath away at least once a day - as I dodge the traffic on my way about my regular life. Getting gas can be a good place to ponder the ocean - gas stations have some of the best real estate, & the traffic is mostly still.
Working on cruise ships all those years ago I knew the ocean. Sometimes flat water, filled with natives in outrigger canoes & tattoos down their noses. Sometimes waves so bad that we could not let the passengers off the ship to ride in those native canoes. There are not many things as sad as a tourist that has spent all that money & time anticipating a ride in a canoe with a native just once in their lives, only to be thwarted by the sea. The ocean does not care. We are not the boss of her, she would say, tossing her violent waves over her shoulders, laughing.
I will always remember climbing the ladders in the night on the outside of the ship, arms filled with snacks & video tapes. My roommate & I would be going to the Officers Rec Room to watch videos & hang out. We had to climb the ladders outside the ship as we were not allowed to go thru the ship out of uniform. Think of climbing a metal ladder. Now, imagine it is wet with ocean spray (even 11 decks up!). You climb in the dark, with the ships lights & the stars being the only lights around. You are in the middle of the ocean, in the tropics, alone. The ship is banging up & down on the waves & you hear them smacking against the hull - boom, boom, boom. The wind is blowing & the spray is hitting you & you are climbing with one hand & you suddenly realize how happy you are - to be just here, just now. Doing this. In the middle of the living, breathing ocean. Who'd've thought you could share your heartbeat with the ocean?
She is a mystery. I haven't seen the ocean yet today. She is probably relaxing here. Rumor has it that she is busy with the hurricane up north. She is gathering up her waves to hurl them at New England. Why? Who knows. But you know she will be laughing madly while she does it, rolling & heaving, throwing herself at the land again & again. Furious that she cannot claim it all.
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