For those that know me well, you probably know that I'm a cautious adventurer. I love to experience new & slightly risky things, but only if I'm sure it's safe because someone else does it first. An example would be moving to a new state. I wanted to move to Texas, but only when I knew I had a school to attend and a place to live. Or hiking. I love exploring, but if there's a chance I'll walk through a spider web, I'll never blaze the trail. I'll go second. I'm super wimpy (& pretty selfish!), I know. I admit it. But my overdeveloped practicality is probably why I've never broken a bone or been to the ER thus far, and that is OK with me.
So, yesterday I went cliff diving. Yes, ME. Yesterday, a friend here on Lanai was telling me how they had jumped of Warrior's Leap, which is an 70 ft. high ancient diving spot where King Kamehameha used to make his warriors leap to prove their loyalty and strength. People have died there. I was so impressed that my friend had jumped, so I asked if there were other diving spots on the island that were a little lower. I'm not quite up for 70 feet. The answer was that yes, there were lower spots, and let's go do it. So I went.
After driving to the small boat harbor and taking the jeep off-road about 1/4 mile, we arrived at a cliff overlooking the ocean. As I peered over the edge, I noticed the water was so clear that I could see the bottom, even from 35 feet up. My friend offered to jump first, and I was happy to watch as he went flipping through the air and landed, with a giant splash, in the water below. I watched him climb out and follow the natural curve of the rock back up to where I was standing. Just like that. In less than 3 minutes he was back, and I was up. Eeek! The picture below is the closest I could find to where I jumped. No, I didn't go off a cliff quite that high, but it is right around the corner from this spot.
I decided that I'd jump, but only if my friend went with me. It took me a few attempts to actually jump. I tried counting the three, but never got past two. Then my friend offered to just pull me in with him, so I wouldn't know when it was coming. But I knew I had to make the decision to jump, otherwise I wouldn't have conquered the cliff. As I worked up my courage, I looked out to sea and saw a pod of dolphins leaping out of the water in the distance. Call it a sign, or call it inspiration, but I grabbed my friend's hand, counted to three, and launched myself off the cliff.
For a few split seconds, I was free falling toward the endless blue ocean--arms and legs flailing, hair whipping my face--before I hit the water with a force that almost took my suit off! Thankfully I caught it before it escaped, and I high-fived my friend with a grin as I reveled in my new-found courage. I laid back in treading water and enjoyed the moment. My heart was beating out of my chest, and I think I gained a small insight into the mind of an adrenaline junkie. What a rush!
Climbing out of the water was a little more difficult than I expected with the waves throwing me up against the rock, but I managed to clamber out and my friend led the way up the cliff to where our clothes were sitting on the ledge. I had conquered the cliff, and my fear, and maybe emerged a little bit closer to the person I want to be. One that isn't afraid to take the leap.
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