Indonesia was a country I never considered visiting until I
met someone from there who became irresitable to me. Thus it became necessary
to take a trip and meet her family and make arrangements for our future life
together. Traveling to her country transformed me from a reasonable person who
would never willfully leave the safety of my comfort zone to an adventurous spirit who seemingly no
longer possesses the instinct to avoid risk.
Among the challenges on my list of concerns regarding this
initial journey to Indonesia was one item that included a plethora of
sub-categories. Danger! In my mind I
had actually calculated the astonishing sum of ways that I might realistically
lose my life, and the number has not a small one. But fear was not enough to
keep me from persuing this girl. With my affection for her dictating my
decisions, I was soon on my first of 15 flights in the next 17 days (most
affordable option on my limited budget). She had arranged an excitingly busy
itinerary for the purpose of introducing me to an equal proportion of culture
and adventure in her homeland.
My fiancé and I started our condensed tour of Indonesia at
“Kilometer Zero” in Sabang , Sumatra. Her plan was to introduce me to
snorkeling, because few locations on Earth can compare to the natural beauty of
that place. She was confident that my amazement would overshadow my fear. She
was not wrong. Although I was terrified to get out of the boat at first, once I
looked under the water, I was a changed person forever!
Upon splashing in and dipping my face beneath surface of an
unimaginably clear sea, I was entirely overwhelmed by vistas of biodiversity
that fully defied all that I had ever known to be possible. The seafloor was 20
meters below my feet, yet I could see every detail as though I were standing on
it. I opened my eyes wider attempting to take in all the beauty. The massive
layers of every species of coral, so colorful that they would humble the most
elaborate fire works exhibition, were vast beyond description. The fish were
‘flying’ all around my body! Up & down and left & right; every shape,
size, and color, and never ceasing
their well-choreographed performance. My whole life up until those first ten
seconds in the sea now seemed ridiculously small.
Joyfully do I recall the exact moment that my life became
meaningful. On August 6th of 2007, when I accepted the fair trade of
fear for passion. That very second was when sharks, snakes, crocodiles, monster
(real or imagined), sinking ships, crashed planes, natural disasters of all
magnitudes, diseases of every mutation, and even crazed bombers could no longer
hold me hostage! Beauty and love had set me free. Now and always there could be
no doubt that there is a God, and he obviously wants me to be happy.
