Letting Go of the Rope

I spent a week in St. Thomas. Yeah. I flew during a pandemic. It wasn’t bad. I washed my hands, used hand sanitizer, and just generally didn’t touch stuff I probably didn’t need to touch anyway. I felt so totally comfortable and good that I didn’t put life on hold. But that’s not what this story is about!

For the first couple of days, we went to the beach and just hung out. All good and well. I like doing that and relaxing in the water where I can touch the bottom. See, I have this fear of water. I don’t love it. As a child, I spent every weekend at a livestock show in a barn vs. at the lake like a lot of friends. We didn’t have a pool. I just never really made learning to swim a priority. About the closest I got to the lake was fishing and I do love that! As I got older, opportunities to float the river, go to the lake, or visit the ocean have presented themselves. I’ve always participated, but with a certain fear and never being totally comfortable. I tend to panic when I get in the water which makes you sink faster.

During our trip, a friend booked an awesome boat trip for all of us to see other parts of St. Thomas and St. John. Part of the trip was to go snorkeling. I didn’t tell them, but I was a bit terrified. How on earth can you snorkel if you don’t like to get your head in the water and you panic? Did I mention how beautiful St. Thomas is? How beautiful the Caribbean is? Well, I knew in my heart that I would regret it forever if I didn’t at least TRY. So, I got on the boat and sucked it up. I had a conversation with the captain about how this was going to work since I’m not a strong swimmer. He told me to use a pool noodle and to stay close to the boat. He threw out the life preserver with the line on it and told me to hold on to the rope until I was comfortable. So, I put on the flippers and mask and eased myself into the water.

I stayed there for a bit just to make sure the noodle would do its job (it seemed awfully thin) and still held on to that little rope like my life depended on it. My friends went off on their exploration and were calling to each other about the cool things they were seeing. I finally plunged my head under the water and a whole new world was opened up! I bet my face wasn’t under water for two seconds that first time. Slowly, though, I started to keep my head under water longer so that I could see all of the coral, amazing fish, sea urchins. However, I still had my hand on the rope. That little rope gave me confidence, but it limited the area that I could explore. I could tell there was a really pretty coral with lots of fish just out of my sight if I kept holding on to that rope. So, I let go of the rope. For just a second I let go. What happened? Nothing. I still floated. I still kept my head above water. Then I moved just a little away so that I could see this larger coral and all of the beautiful fish over in this new area. Letting go of the rope opened up a whole new area of beauty for me to see.

Then we got back into the boat and headed to our next destination. This time, our captain said the sea turtles I was eager to see were closer to the beach near a buoy that was a LONG way from the boat. Next, there is coral near a point that was on the other side where a shark hangs out. Our group set out for the turtles with me right there with them (still with my pool noodle). The turtles were amazing! Had I not let go of the rope at the first stop, I don’t know that I would’ve had the courage to swim to the turtles. A couple of us saw a small shark, several stingrays, tons of gorgeous fish, and beautiful coral.

Here’s the thing. I needed the rope. I needed it to give me the confidence to start. But I also needed to let go of the rope. Holding on to the rope gave me a small area to explore but letting go opened up so much more of the world. What ropes are you holding on to? I know I’ve got a few other ropes that I’ve been clinging to in life. Career. Dating. Just to name a couple. What will trigger you to let go of the rope? To allow yourself to explore the larger area and see all of the beauty around you? The rope wasn’t really even holding me up. It was just a security measure. That tiny little rope was not the difference between life and death, but it felt that way at the time. How often in life do we cling to things that really aren’t serving us? Things that seem to be helping, but might really be holding us back?

So, let go of the ropes that are holding you back and see what the world can offer you just outside of your comfort zone.

SF

P.S. – I’m incredibly thankful for old and new friends on this trip!