Up Close
The wind whipped through my hair as I sat on the edge of a motorized raft that zipped across the ocean bay to Molokini island. I was headed with my family to our very first snorkel site. It was two days after Christmas, and it was 80 degrees in Hawaii. With the sun on my face and an occassional wave splahing on my warm skin, I was enjoying this not-so-traditional holiday activity.
Suddenly, the boat made a sharp turn off course, taking us away from the island ahead of us where we were going to snorkel. I turned my head, noticing that everyone was looking in that direction as a few of our fellow travelers were pointing to the horizon. In the far distance, I glimpsed a small spray of water in the air - a Hawaiian humpback whale! The boat picked up speed until we reached the spot where the whales were sighted. "Over there!" We all turned our heads just in time to see two gigantic whales wave their tales in the air before slapping them down on the water with a huge splash. Starting up the boat again, we approached the whales even closer. We were not whale-watchers, we were whale-chasers!
The next spray of water we saw was even closer to our boat. Everyone oohed and aahed as the two whales waved their fins at us and slapped their tales on the water. Even when they stayed underwater for a few minutes, we waited patiently and let the boat rock with the waves. Just when I thought the whales were gone, another blow sprayed water up into the air. This time, it was only twenty feet from our little boat! I have always known that whales were big animals, but when you can see the hairs on the noses and the bumps on the backs from only twenty feet away, you literally stand there with your mouth hanging wide open. I couldn't believe that those wild whales were so close to us!
For the next hour and a half, we chased whales across the bay. We watched two males fight by slapping their tales at one another. We saw the backs, fins, noses, faces, and tails of perhaps ten different whales. One whale repeatedly flapped his tail in the air over and over again while we clapped and cheered for him. We even watched a mother and her calf play. I promise that the little calf waved to us with his fin. For the grand finale, we witnesses a humpback whale breach completely out of the water. I thought that only happened on Discovery Channel or in National Geographic, but I got to see it with my own eyes from about 100 feet away. I think I could have made a Planet Earth video out of the whales I saw that day.
When we finally made it to Molokini island to snorkel, I was a little bit hesitant to jump into the cold, deep, turbulent water. We were actually snorkeling off the back side of a volcano crater, so we were swimming up against a huge wall that dropped off into ocean depths. I couldn't even see the bottom, just the huge waves crashing into the rocks close-by. Were there really fish down there? My dad jumped in first, and the look on his face was all it took for me to jump in right after him. When I first opened my eyes, I forgot all about the cold water or the crashing waves because I was swimming in a tropical aquarium. Huge fish with the colors of the rainbow painted all over them swam within the reach of my hand. There was so much to see that I didn't know which way to look. Schools of colorful fish sparkeled in the sunlight and the corals swayed with the rise and fall of the waves. When I held my breath, I could hear whale echoes in the distance. Through the crystal clear water, I watched beautiful, glorious, colorful fishes swim all around me without fear.
When we arrived back on shore, I asked my mom, "Did that really just happen?" I could not believe how close we had been to God's indescribable creation. Swimming in God's aquarium and watching His whales swim, splash, and play so close to us seemed too unbelievable. God showed us how beautiful and creative He is, and He gave us front-row seats. We were blessed to experience His glory up-close and personal!
Suddenly, the boat made a sharp turn off course, taking us away from the island ahead of us where we were going to snorkel. I turned my head, noticing that everyone was looking in that direction as a few of our fellow travelers were pointing to the horizon. In the far distance, I glimpsed a small spray of water in the air - a Hawaiian humpback whale! The boat picked up speed until we reached the spot where the whales were sighted. "Over there!" We all turned our heads just in time to see two gigantic whales wave their tales in the air before slapping them down on the water with a huge splash. Starting up the boat again, we approached the whales even closer. We were not whale-watchers, we were whale-chasers!
The next spray of water we saw was even closer to our boat. Everyone oohed and aahed as the two whales waved their fins at us and slapped their tales on the water. Even when they stayed underwater for a few minutes, we waited patiently and let the boat rock with the waves. Just when I thought the whales were gone, another blow sprayed water up into the air. This time, it was only twenty feet from our little boat! I have always known that whales were big animals, but when you can see the hairs on the noses and the bumps on the backs from only twenty feet away, you literally stand there with your mouth hanging wide open. I couldn't believe that those wild whales were so close to us!
For the next hour and a half, we chased whales across the bay. We watched two males fight by slapping their tales at one another. We saw the backs, fins, noses, faces, and tails of perhaps ten different whales. One whale repeatedly flapped his tail in the air over and over again while we clapped and cheered for him. We even watched a mother and her calf play. I promise that the little calf waved to us with his fin. For the grand finale, we witnesses a humpback whale breach completely out of the water. I thought that only happened on Discovery Channel or in National Geographic, but I got to see it with my own eyes from about 100 feet away. I think I could have made a Planet Earth video out of the whales I saw that day.
When we finally made it to Molokini island to snorkel, I was a little bit hesitant to jump into the cold, deep, turbulent water. We were actually snorkeling off the back side of a volcano crater, so we were swimming up against a huge wall that dropped off into ocean depths. I couldn't even see the bottom, just the huge waves crashing into the rocks close-by. Were there really fish down there? My dad jumped in first, and the look on his face was all it took for me to jump in right after him. When I first opened my eyes, I forgot all about the cold water or the crashing waves because I was swimming in a tropical aquarium. Huge fish with the colors of the rainbow painted all over them swam within the reach of my hand. There was so much to see that I didn't know which way to look. Schools of colorful fish sparkeled in the sunlight and the corals swayed with the rise and fall of the waves. When I held my breath, I could hear whale echoes in the distance. Through the crystal clear water, I watched beautiful, glorious, colorful fishes swim all around me without fear.
When we arrived back on shore, I asked my mom, "Did that really just happen?" I could not believe how close we had been to God's indescribable creation. Swimming in God's aquarium and watching His whales swim, splash, and play so close to us seemed too unbelievable. God showed us how beautiful and creative He is, and He gave us front-row seats. We were blessed to experience His glory up-close and personal!
"How many are your works, LORD!
In wisdom you made them all;
the earth is full of your creatures.
There is the sea, vast and spacious,
teeming with creatures beyond number—
living things both large and small."
Psalm 104:24-26
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