Reason #489

We stayed at The Beloved Resort on our honeymoon. We actually learned a few weeks ago that Davis means ‘beloved’ in some other language (but I don’t remember which language), so I thought it was quite fitting that we would stay there. Anyhow, it was beautiful! Great service, amazing amenities, and an incredible view. We actually booked our honeymoon a while back, and at that time, we were in vacation mode. We were far from feeling the weight of wedding planning and were, at the time, rested, thus causing us to be a little overzealous with our honeymoon plans. We decided we would take one day to relax and then fill the remaining days with activities. The up-side to that is that you get to see and experience a lot of cool things that you wouldn’t get to otherwise. The down-side of that is that you’re completely exhausted and worn out when you arrive, and resting sounds like the best thing to do.

 

Well, we rested as much as we could, and we filled our days with fun things. Now, as you all know, I am not a risk taker. I could care the less about adventure, and I like to play it safe. My mind tends to operate in “worst-case-scenario” mode and I’m always convinced that I will be the one person that something bad happens to.  Aaron, on the other hand, likes the idea of an adventure. He’s far more brave than I am, and he is much more willing to take a risk. Two out of 4 of our planned activities were not up my alley. Let me share one of my fears with you. Open water that is above my head. I’m all about the beach as long as the water does not pass my waist. I’ll stand in the ocean, get my toes wet, let the waves hit me, but if I can’t see my feet or I can’t see the sky, I’d prefer to just watch. Two of these excursions required that I put on my brave face, and the only thing giving me courage was the fact that our money would not be refunded otherwise.

 

Day 2 we went to a nature park. The all inclusive part was a tad misleading, as all of the fun activities had to be paid for separately. Thankfully, Aaron brought along a little cash, and we agreed we’d try out the Sea Trek. We showed up to the Sea Trek, signed a health and safety waiver, and I began to wonder why I had agreed to this. Trying to be a good sport, I just kept reminding myself that this was going to be a really neat, once-in-a-lifetime experience, and if I ended up dying, at least I was going out in a cool way. I climbed down a ladder into the ocean and a 60-pound, oxygen-fed helmet was slipped over my head. I slowly sank about 12 or 15 feet down onto the ocean floor trying to control my breathing. Don’t panic, stay calm, you’ll survive! For the next 30 minutes, we walked across the sea floor and saw fish, sting rays, and I even held a sea urchin. I had about a 40 pound fish swimming around my head the whole time. I think he was trying to help. Anyway, our time was up and we climbed out of the ocean feeling very accomplished and glad that we went through with it.

 

Day 5 we went on a jungle tour. I was already a little nervous about this one, and by the end of our week we were beat. I was fighting off a sore throat and Aaron was blistered from head to toe. We mustered up our energy (and my courage) and we headed to downtown Cancun. We showed up and were assigned a two-person speed boat. Once again, we signed a waiver. This time, we were agreeing to pay a hefty sum if we flipped the boat. I tightened my lifejacket and happily agreed to let Aaron be the captain. Thirty minutes later, after literally jumping waves, we wound up in the middle of the ocean. Our tour guide jumped out, roped everyone’s boats together and said, “Dive-in! Ladies first!” Are you kidding me?! You seriously expect me to jump in the middle of the ocean with no land in sight? Yep, that’s what was expected. And so I pulled on my snorkeling gear and slid into the ocean. For another half hour, we snorkeled through a reef. We saw some amazing things, and I was glad that I jumped in rather than staying in the boat.

 

Sometimes, life is scary. Sometimes, God calls us out of our comfort zone completely. Sometimes, we just have to be brave. And who knows what it is that you’ll face. Maybe you’ve walked yourself there, or maybe He has guided you there. And so, like me, you might stand there and think “Absolutely not. There is no way I can do this. I am not going through with it. What was I thinking?” Or, you can just do it. You can go through with it trust that God is going through it with you. He isn’t going to abandon you and let your fears defeat you. And, like it is most of the time, the things that seem to be the most terrifying end up being the most rewarding. Sometimes, they end up being the best experiences, too. And so in the end, you’re glad it happened. You’re glad you did it because it was worth while. And now, you have a cool story. Now, you’ve got something worth sharing, and experiences like that only happen when you are willing to be brave.

 

#489 - For the memorable and fun experiences that come from being brave!

 

"...be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” - Joshua 1:9