Journal

Journal

Alexandra DiMarco August 31, 2010
Writing & Research

Journal #1

      I was submerged 35 feet below water with nothing holding me down, with no oxygen to feed my deprived lungs and no one to help me through the attack. I tried my best to get to the surface as quickly as I could, it was almost impossible.
      Father-daughter bonding is a significant attribute to my family. We always have fun times such as going to six flags, going to the beach, going fishing etc. but now we took it one step further. We took on scuba diving and decided to get legally certified. In order to get certified you have to attend weekly sessions for 6 months alternating between the classroom and the pool. In the classroom you learn the basics, and the “do’s” and the “dont’s” of scuba diving. In the pool you suit up and scuba dive in the pool and practice the skills you need to get certified. At the end of the 6 months you must go to a scuba diving resort called Dutch Springs in Pennsylvania. At the resort you must demonstrate all the skills underwater within a 3 day time limit some of which are clearing your mask, equalizing your ears, read the pressure gauge etc. You dive down with a class of approximately 10 people and 2 instructors who grade you on your abilities. In order to get certified you must achieve each and every skill without failing any of them. If you succeed you are a certified open water diver but if you fail you have one year to try again. This was my problem.
      We start getting suited up to go on our first dive and make sure all the gauges are working and the oxygen is flowing correctly through the regulator. Everything is in check and we start to go under the water to start the individual evaluations. Two hours later we surface on top of the water and we had all achieved the first dive. One hour later we go back down for the second dive. Once again we all surface and we had all achieved the second dive. The next dive was different, I felt as nothing...