wow, what a day! If you ever wondered where writers got their ideas, this is one way of going about it. I almost always write from personal experience and/or a lot of research. For example, DANGEROUS PREY, HQN, December 2008, was two years of research into the world of raptors before it came to press. I'm sure, based upon my experience, you'll see a dolphin or two show up in one of my future books.
Here I am being introduced to SANDY, the Atlantic bottlenosed dolphin. The signal for her to come to you is to cup your hands together...and she gently comes forward to nestle her nose into your hands. What a thrill!
One of my fondest dreams has been to swim with dolphins. At Sea World in San Diego, California, they have a dolphin interaction program. I signed up for it on Tuesday, at 3:30 pm. I got to meet Sandy, a 40 year old Atlantic bottle nose dolphin at Sea World in San Diego. Sandy has been a "mom" six times. The trainer said that Sandy was so nurturing and maternal--and she certainly was. The people in my group were Europeans. There was Maria from Sweden and William and his wife (sorry forgot her name) were from Amsterdam, Netherlands!! My dharma with the Netherlands is alive and well!
Sandy comes up to Eileen and she holds the dolphin's flippers while she stays upright with strong swishes with her tail.
We did a whole lot of things with Sandy. We cupped our hands and she would nuzzle her nose right into our palms and then we could pet her. She loved being around us. As a matter of fact, she kept bobbing up and looking at me was I waited a half hour beforehand. It was a wonderful feeling to have a dolphin waiting for me. But I love dolphins and they know that.
This is one of my favorite photos....I had to get down on one knee and Sandy came gliding up. The dolphin's skin is soft, sleek and Sandy loves to be touched and patted. She was a mother six times and has been in Sea World for 40 years. Her trainer has been with her for thirty-five years. The trainer was saying that Sandy was one of most nurturing, mothering of all the dolphins and one of their star entertainers.
We spent a good 40 minutes in some pretty cold sea water. Even with a wet suit, it wasn't too bad. At 4:00 pm the sun was going down and the temperature was too...but still, when I was in the water with Sandy, time just stopped existing. I had such a wonderful time. Memories to keep. This is something I've wanted to do all my life. And it was something I wanted to do,sooner not later. I'm not sorry I did.
The Netherland's couple were on the left, Maria from Sweden in the middle and me at Sandy's tail end in a 'log roll.' I don't know who was having more fun--us of the dolphin. They are HEAVY!
Maria, the gal next to me in the photo, didn't have the money to buy anything so I had bought the CD of all our photos. It was her birthday. I told her "Happy Birthday" and her friend provided an email address. I'll make a copy of the photos and send them to her. She was a very sweet person.
At last, forty minutes later, our dolphin interaction was at an end. Sandy waved 'good-bye' to us by standing on her nose with her tail out of the water 'waving' at us. We waved good-bye too, sad that it was over, but exhilerated by simply being able to share time and space with her. Thank you, Sandy.
In fact, it was interesting to look at the feelings around the twelve people who came to swim with the dolphins....they all had a very quiet, gentle, androgynous energy...and a true connection to Mom Earth. It was a wonderful encounter shared with equally wonderful people. And I'm sure you'll see dolphins showing up sooner or later in one of my books!
Everyone wanted to kiss Sandy! So did I. I mentally thanked her for her service to us humans. The trainer was saying that once people meet, see or watch a dolphin interaction (there was a huge crowd of people above watching the whole thing) that they see how beautiful and loving these dolphins are--they go out and buy dolphin-safe tuna. And, they also start taking up an interest in the health of our oceans and going green to keep it free of pollutants so it won't kill sea life. The dolphins, while in captivity, render a silent service to help humans understand them and the ocean at large. I thanked Sandy for her sacrifice to all of us so that we 'get it.' She's truly and wonderful ambassador of her nation. The dolphin nation.
In Spirit, Eileen
www.lindsaymckenna.com
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