Whole-body jumper, or Inch-by-Incher?

When people come to visit my beloved hometown of Hilo, the first thing I like to do is torture them - especially if they have never been to the Big Island before.  We don't really have your traditional white sand beaches with turquoise blue balmy water on the East side of the island.  We have these tidal areas that are a mix of lava rocks, black sand, and coral reefs and ice cold, cold, cold fresh water from the mountains that bubbles up from underground and mixes with the warm ocean water.  So you have to first freeze your ass off to swim out to the warm water, and even better we have "ice ponds" that are mostly that ice cold fresh water with a little bit of the warmer ocean water settled at the bottom (salt water denser).

So when people get off the plane the first place I take them is to the ice pond, then we stand there an no one is allowed to leave until they get in.  It sounds all refreshing and wonderful right?  Well when you are standing in 82 degree weather and dip your big toe in 55 degree water logic suddenly takes a turn and you convince yourself you're really not THAT hot.  The best way to do it is to jump in without thinking.  Once you get the lungs seizing, whole body shock thing over with the water feels wonderful.  The worst thing to do is to go in inch by inch. It seems more humane to let your body get used to the frigid water little by little, but no one usually gets past the bellybutton without turning around and running for the towel.  I like to see what people are made of, because you are either a whole-body jumper, or an inch-by-incher.

Growing up here I used to be a whole-body jumper.  No thinking, no testing the water, no easing into the situation.  Just jump.  Just go.  Take the shock!  Then relax into the high of the endorphin rush.  Somewhere along the years of being away I've turned into an Inch-by-Incher.  I take my time and let a little of my body freeze at a time, finally dunking my head in when everyone is all dried off and ready to go home.

Fact:  we are all going to die at some point.  We are born, we shall die.  No way around it, no one is exempt.  Most people who die young don't get the luxury of seeing it coming.  It's usually a fast, unexpected traumatic event.  Most people who live out a long life get to see the end start to creep in as your body starts to function a little less easily, as you need to ask for a little more help, and you realize your mortality as the years bear on.  Death comes to us in these two flavors - whole-body jump or inch-by-inch, and we don't get to choose which death we get to have.  There is a sense of mercy to be able to flash have your life over with - to not have to endure unnecessary pain nor watch the pain in your loved ones eyes.  But you can also see a long dying process as a kind of mercy to you and your loved ones.  To have the opportunity to say everything you ever wanted to say, to see those who mean the most to you, and to put your affairs in order is also a blessing.

Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere people.  These are just the thoughts that run through my head as I try to understand what is happening around me.  What I do know is that whether you choose to whole-body jump into that cold water, or if you choose to inch-by-inch your way in, either way the reward is the same once you immerse your head all the way in.  Any of my friends that have made it through the torture will tell you, getting out of that water your body feels like it is glowing - like you are pulsing with the earth, tingling from head to toe, and cleaner than you have ever been before.

love,
Denise