When our son, Henry, was 8 years old, he found his passion. The boys were learning about the ocean in our homeschool. Since there’s no better way to learn about something than to go see it, we had planned a trip to Florida during that time. I called the Marine Biology lab at Florida State University to ask if we could come visit while we were in the area and learn about the work they do there. I figured they could always tell me no. But they didn’t. They welcomed us with gusto! And as we continue to learn time and again on our travels, a passionate person is the best teacher about their subject matter.
On our tour of the facility, after looking at samples of corals and interesting things like preserved sharks, we made our way out to the dive boats they use to conduct research. There, we met the research diving instructor. He was so passionate about scuba that it was contagious! He let the boys try on diving equipment as he showed us everything in the equipment shed.
Henry looked at me with a twinkle in his eye and a huge grin on his face as he put on a BCD. I snapped a photo. That was the exact moment that he found “his thing,” and I am so happy that I got to witness that moment.
When we got home, Henry and I did some research on what it takes to become a diver. We learned that you have to be at least 10 years old, you have to take an online course, complete confined water dives in a pool and complete several open water dives with an instructor to become a certified open water diver. Over the next few years, Henry followed the advice from the dive instructor at FSU to a T (while you wait to turn 10, learn as much as you can about the ocean and become the best swimmer you can be). Throughout the course of all this, Henry’s twin brother, Oliver, and my husband Chris got interested and they all worked through the certification class together.
Last week was a momentous occasion. We were in Florida for our annual family beach trip and the dive buddies were going to get to dive in the ocean for the first time! We met the dive master at the dive shop, Panama City Dive Center. This was a very interesting place, filled with scuba equipment and things the owners had found over the years diving off the coast of Florida. The people working there were incredibly kind. The lady behind the counter brought out her cookie jar and let Henry and Oliver each have one and then got out her dive books to show them all the things they might see while they waited for the dive master to get all the equipment ready.
“Look at that sign,” said our oldest son, Jack, pointing to a sign above the doorway. It said, “It’s always a great day to breathe underwater.”
It’s the best day to breathe underwater, I thought. My favorite thing about being a parent is watching my kids achieve something they’ve dreamed about doing. I wasn’t even going diving, but I was having a great day to breathe underwater myself as I thought about all the hard work Henry, Oliver, and Chris had put into this and how excited they must be. I wondered where I could find that sign to give to Henry one day when he becomes a marine biologist or whatever underwater career he might find for himself.
My parents, my sister, Jack, and I had come along as support people and we watched as they descended underwater at St. Andrews State Park. Then we had a great time exploring; we walked the pier, talked to fishermen, and found some interesting seashells.
After the divers emerged and got out of all their accoutrements, we headed to our favorite little spot in Panama City, Bayou Joe’s, for dinner. It was the perfect setting on the water to hear about the adventure. Visibility had been poor and the current had been too strong to go around to the other side of the jetty, but it had been a great first dive in the ocean and they had seen plenty of colorful fish. This dive served to whet their appetites for more, and they are already planning for the next one. It was indeed a great day to breathe underwater.
You can reach Abby Schwent at byabbyschwent@gmail.com. Follow her on Instagram at @byabbyschwent