Posted by seahunt on February 20, 2002 at 13:01:49:
In Reply to: Is she a certified PADI diver yet? posted by Seaserpent on February 20, 2002 at 09:55:55:
Actually, She is just 2 1/2, but she is quite fearless. Notice
that she is swinging that lobster around.
For reasons of bone development, if nothing else, I'm not going
to promote scuba diving to my kids. Maybe snorkeling. I'd rather
they body surfed.
As Steve said so well, either you dive and have fun or you dive
and it changes your life. If it changes their life, I'll have
little to say about it, though my main objective will be
caution.
I can assure you that PADI or not will be irrelevant to her. She
is not going to think that way. My certification was quite irrelevant
to me. It is still only a NAUI Beginning Scuba Diver, but I think I
progressed beyond that on my own. It is just my way and it will be
hers as well. I can already tell that.
If you want my real opinion. I'm very ambivelant. I sort of think
diving is a poor sport for a person to take up. It can consume too
much of your life. Remember, I'm a dive bum. I've devoted my life
to it and had a great time, but I understand its cost to
me.
It is also a far more expensive sport than it was.
Also, diving is many sports. It can be like running. It can be
photography. It can be hunting. It can be social or anti-social.
Really, I doubt I'll have all that much to say about it, but I
won't promote it. The best thing about diving as a sport is that
it is very low impact on the body and you can continue to do it
at an older age. At the same time, divers are typically going
much deeper than they used to and there may be important
physiological aspects to that.
I guess I just proved I'm a genius. I can give you all the important
facts and considerations, but no answers. ... Ah, it's probably a
good sport for a person. See, I'm not a genius if I can give a real
answer.
She and her brother are a trip. They pull me from the sea.
Enjoy the diving, seahunt