Aug 16, 2016
By Elaine J. Masters
An Unexpected Discovery in The Philippines
As a child I was never one to spend time in the deep end of the pool. I swam well but diving hurt my ears. So it was a surprise to sit twelve feet under water in Cozumel, monitoring my breathing and having no pain at all. What started as a brief resort dive has become an obsession. It surprises no one more than me that I’ve mastered scuba diving after turning fifty. At first I was my boyfriend’s camera sherpa, struggling to keep up with him and carrying his spare. Now, over 300 dives later, I take my own pictures, keeping up with him if I want to.
Recently at the remote UNESCO World Heritage site, Tubbatha Reef, in the middle of the Philippines’ Sula Sea, I learned again to keep up, but this time with a group of Korean and Chinese divers. They were mostly young, many dive masters, and dressed in some of the most colorful, designer label wet suits imaginable. Bunny ears on dive hoods! Cartoon characters on shins and bright pink fins. Aggressive divers, they would shoot out a hundred feet down to capture pictures of schools of fish, or paddle furiously to get close to manta rays, hustling close to whale sharks and lion fish. My camera was limited to macro shots, not as flexible as their state-of-the-art rigs and GoPros. My dive gear was worn, booties shredded, a split in a seam on the arm of my wet suit. On our dives together I poked around corals, peered into crevices and worked with the current to stay up with the group.
Then on our last day we chose to dive with just two others, our live-aboard boat owner and our American compatriot over 75 years old, award-winning underwater photographer and author, Robert Yin. He counseled me on how to get close to fish, “They notice our heartbeats. If you’re excited, your heart pounding, you sound like a predator. Slow your breath and see if the fish react differently.”
On our last dive of the trip, moments after we back-splashed into the water, a giant manta lifted up from the fathoms below us at the reef wall. We held back as he flipped, swirling and then paused. That part of the reef is a feeding and cleaning station for the mighty creatures. Before he departed, we watched remoras and smaller fish skitter over his skin. The current picked up and Robert positioned himself behind a shallow pinnacle, out of the rushing water. A few moments later he darted out to shoot a school of Moorish Angels. The current challenged my comfort zone so I retreated to the top of the reef, again to shoot close ups.
In the shallows, out of the currents’ force, I spied a slow school of angel fish. Remembering Robert’s words about slow breathing, I started a yogic pranayama from my days as a teacher. My awareness shifted as my heart slowed. The school held steady and I slid into their presence. Instead of darting, they twisted to avoid touch but stayed close, sliding past my mask, my fingers and arms. It was such a rush, but I kept my breath steady, holding still. I’d become a rubbery, black fish in the clutch of dozens of little ones. Moments later, with a few spurts of air into my vest, I floated up and away.
I was the alien in their midst, so their acceptance that I was nothing to fear was so freeing. It had taken years of struggle with the mechanics of diving – botched descents, humbling mistakes struggling to master the gear, checking gauges, fittings, straps yet, there I was – transcending all that training with the simplest of tasks, the first action we take at birth, breathing. It didn’t matter how torn or flashy my gear was, whether I was keeping up or not, I found complete abandon in those few simple moments, breathing slowly in the depths.
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About the Author
Elaine J. Masters
Freelance travel writer, blogger, and associate producer on the NPR podcast, Journeys of Discovery, Elaine's writing awards include: Indie Excellence, NATJA 2015 Bronze Medal Award for Internet Luxury & Leisure Travel Writing, and the Society of Professional Journalists San Diego Blog Honorable Mention. Rarely found at home in San Diego, Elaine covers quirky adventures, cultural and culinary discoveries, traveling well, and scuba diving.