When i first join up with a pod of bottlenose, knowing how
shy they can be compared to the
gregarious spotted dolphins we swim with here, i move in slowly,
watching to see how comfortable they are with my presence. I'll
stay on the surface, not diving down into their space, content to
watch from above. They dive down for several minutes at a time,
catching three, four, five fish each time. My heart starts racing as
they head upward, swimming so gracefully to the surface
to breath. Once on top, they
take three or four deep breaths before returning to the bottom,
which out here averages 20 to 40 feet deep.
The bottlenose often swing by to check me
out when they come up to breath. Sometimes they
come straight up to me, turning only ten feet away, scanning me the
whole time. Often i can feel and hear their sonar, and when i do, i energetically
open my aura to greet them. Sometimes, i'll sense there are others
behind me, scanning me with sonar. When i spin around to see, they turn away like shy school
kids.
I watch for the dolphins who come closest, and
if they give me a good look in the eye, i follow them from the
surface as they work their way along the bottom. Then i'm nearby
when they next come up for air....
As they head up, i beam them positive energy. I tell
them how much i appreciate them and bath them, the pod and
the whole ocean with love. I get so worked up i end up blessing
everyone and everything. I'm getting a lift just thinking about
it!
As they surface, i watch and feel, following
their lead. If they turn away, i keep my
distance. Inevitably one comes close, and as he closes the gap
between us, my heart starts racing and i send out an invitation to
play. I become a puppy, wiggling my head, my shoulders, my whole
body, ready to dive, twist and turn if the invitation is returned.
As it was with this pod. Day after day they
grew closer, until yesterday when every single time they came up for
air, they each came over to play with me. It got so i'd dive down to
greet them on the way up, we'd meet halfway and start swimming
around each other, my smile causing water to leak in my snorkel.
Then we'd swim together, me with heart
pounding and camera clicking, waves of good energy billowing amongst
us. Most of the time, we'd swim fast and dive around each other.
Sometimes I
got dizzy from doing so many underwater spins.
