Today
was one of those days you remember forever.
Not just a good day, not
just a great day, but one of those times you realize you will talk
about with your family for every Christmas, every marriage of one of
the kids, each time the family gathers.
One of my biggest
fears is sharks! My father took me to the movie JAWS when I was 11
years old, and it changed my life forever! I was sitting at the far end
of my father at the movie theater, and he asked me if I wanted to sit by
him.
I said, “No, I am good” As the opening of the movie began, the
music came on. You know: duna, duna, duna, dununa, duna! I jumped
up, ran to my father and sat on his lap, terrified, through the whole
movie!
So
today, someone bought my two oldest boys and me a gift – cage-diving in
South Africa with Jaws! No, really, Jaws himself.
One, then two, then
three circled us. They swam up to the cage, looked us in the eyes, and I
tried to kiss one at my father’s request. They were that close!
I received this email from my dad the night before the big dive:
Just
remember 2 Tim 1:7. When I was 13 I stood on top of that dam and looked
down to the swirling waters and was a little bit afraid. I jumped the
first time and dove thereafter. It released fear from my life. Go for
it, face your fears, I will be praying as you kiss one of them on the
nose, ha.
-Love, Dad
My father lost his right arm after this
dive, and he still wrote this to me after I told him we were diving with
sharks. I am my father’s son, and, I am raising his grandchildren to be just like him!
Tyler and Michael were pretty upset as I told
them we were going fishing. I just didn’t tell them that we were the bait!
As we drove down this morning at 4:30 am to catch the boat out to
“Shark Alley,” it was raining, cloudy and unbelievably scary. Once the
boys understood what they were doing, they would not talk to me – they
sat back, laid their heads on the window of the car and stared out the
window.
At
the end of the day, they were full of life, a huge fear had been
conquered, and I was their hero once again: “Dad, I could have had a
PSP for Christmas like all my friends; now, I get to sit one day with a
girl and tell her of the day I shark-dove with my dad in South Africa,
and it changed my life!”
I am full and happy today – not so much because I conquered a fear, but because I won my boys’ hearts back once again. Now, that is one of my biggest fears!
Check out www.sharkwatchsa.com and see if you can find us!
