March 30, 2019

Today, in the warm Indian Ocean,

 Our small boat smashed over waves for hours

In search of the elusive dolphins.

It was much like our safari ride, 

Where I tensed muscles or relaxed muscles

Trying to lessen the jarring on my back.

Neither worked.

All I could think of was

“When will this be over? “

And then we found them.

All of the discomfort was forgotten.

The dolphins were interested in us.

They crested in the sea.

They rolled over the surface

In ones, twos, threes.........

They gathered in the distance

On the left of the boat.

And when I glanced to the right,

They were literally beside me.

Every so often, I would gasp,

As a dolphin rose up vertically on its’ tail,

Or leapt into the air doing rolls and spins.

It was amazing.

Jim told me, I hadn’t  watched  enough tv.

The number of dolphins grew and grew,

I was still snapping out of focus photos 

And munching on my breakfast sandwich,

When we motored back to the reef for snorkelling.

The reef is huge,

Over three hundred square miles.

However most of the reef is dead.

Mankind is not kind.

We rolled into the water with our masks and snorkels.

Colourful fish in all sizes and shapes

Glided below and around us.

Tiny green fish, with yellow tails,

And neon blue side fins, striped with red,

Were my favourites.

I didn’t see the octopus, or eels or turtles,

But Pria, our guide, assured me 

He tried to point them out.

That the reef was dead was depressing,

And I was still dreading trying to get back into the boat.

Jim eased my discomfort by also feigning problems

Getting back into the boat.

 He was hauled and pushed

Until he eventually fell into the boat.

I did likewise.

It wasn’t pretty.

On the way back,

The boat stopped for tea and Palm sugar

 At a lovely beach.

Our boat driver, Tamila,

Kept patting the sand

And telling me to sit down.

Eventually, I obliged but

I knew I was in for problems.

Jim had a lovely swim

But I couldn’t join him,

Because I couldn’t get back up.

Thankfully, when Jim came in 

He hauled me to my feet,

So that I could get back to the boat!

Oh muscular dystrophy,

You have added an unwanted challenge 

To my life.

I hope, I can keep my joyousness

Despite this disability.