Breaking out of the comfort zone

Out of the comfort zone and smiling!

Today a dear friend I dated in high school PM’d me after reading about my latest dive adventure. He asked good naturedly if it was right or fair that someone our age should be having so much fun.   At our age, I replied, we should be accelerating these moments; we should be piling up as many as we can.

Now is not the time to slow down, but to speed things up. Like most people, I’ve frittered away this precious gift of time throughout my life with many things that were utterly meaningless and did not enhance the mortal experience. Now in middle-age time is more precious to me than ever before. About adventures I can no longer say, “I’ll do that later when I have _______,”  (fill in the blank here: more time, when I retire, more money, less stress in my life, when I’m done with school, etc) . To do this –- to make or seize opportunities that may never pass this way again -- requires I get out of my comfort zone.

And, to my utter delight, I have discovered how immensely rewarding it is to experience the world from outside the comfort zone. Take this week, for example.  I'm in north Florida for a few days on a cave diving trip by myself. The "cave diving" part straddles the comfort zone -- I've racked up enough time in deep, dark, water-filled holes in the ground to have a reasonable level of comfort there.The "by myself" part is outside that zone and, so far, I have been richly blessed. 

Cave diving is one of the most high risk types of diving in the scuba world. It is extreme technical diving and we cave divers are notoriously selective about who we trust to enter that subterranean world with us. My “cave sister", my regular and most trusted cave dive buddy, is on a business trip this week. But this is the only week I could get to Florida for a while and I’ve been jonesing for the caves in the worst way. I just couldn't wait for her. So I came alone, trusting that I would find other competent, safe divers to get into a cave with me.

Two days ago I posted to one of the cave diver forums online that I was looking for buddies to dive with this week and -- voila -- my dance card was instantly full. These new dive buddies are taking that same leap of faith I am that each will meet the expectations of the other for safe, skilled cave diving. 

The first dive with a new buddy today did not disappoint.

This morning I dove one of Florida's most beautiful underwater cave systems, a place called Little River, with an excellent diver and new friend, Ricky Dumm. After our initial descent into the underwater cavern zone, we swam through about 1,000 feet of winding tunnels and huge galleries of limestone, sculpted by time and flood into crenellated walls, stone windows, and arches that would be the envy of Byzantium, at a depth of 100 feet, through water so clear you feel like you are floating in air; a wonderland of unspeakable awe few living creatures ever get to see, and doing it all with my new friend who is as besotted with the caves as I. The joy of sharing this experience with a new friend was as grand as the cave itself.

When the walls of your comfort zone resemble the bars of a cage it’s time to break out of them, no matter how intimidating that might seem, and experience the rewarding adventure on the other side. As for me, I am just getting started.