Jin & I were in Tioman over the weekend. We flew over on Friday with his family & it was a mission to be completed since the unfortunate event in Pulau Payar months ago. Jin had expressed that we should go to places to see sharks. One of the traits he has is his good looks not to mention his ability to share what he feels with me. So we left the group & headed out on our own to Tioman Dive Centre & spent the next two days diving. The girls at the centre were oooh-ing & aaah-ing over how cute he is as we proceeded to gear up & Jin put on his suit. “Pam, can you zip me up please?” “Sure, sweetie!” Overhearing his mannerisms made the girls swoon further & by the looks on their faces, you can see approving looks over how great a man Jin would be.
Jin held my hand when we got into deeper waters. He would constantly look at me to ‘read’ what I would want as sometimes, hand signals may not be possible when your hands are full. Though we have done many dives together in Sipadan & Tenggol before he got fully certified, Tioman is somewhere he wasn’t familiar with so he would look at me for assurance. I found a shark’s egg for him, he pointed to giant clam, I showed him a live Tiger Cowrie & all the time we had a Tusk Fish follow us. On one of the dives, we set out to do the Controlled Emergency Swimming Ascent where I had to tie a surface marker buoy to an anchor for the exercise. Carrying a weightbelt with 3kg of weights attached, I had to tow the buoy right out to 6metres of water. Jin was just hovering around. I was half squatting & tying the string of the spool to the weightbelt anchor before I felt a pierce on my butt (or many pierces…) realising that I had SAT ON A SEA URCHIN. I signalled to Jin to ‘look’ at ‘my’ butt while he swam around me, with my swim shorts & bikini lifted, examined the injury. I signalled to him, “How many?” and he went into a fit of laughter signalling back, “SIX!” Oh bummer, did it have to happen just when you are having fun & trying to look professional? Well, I thought it was funny too because I had purposely selected an area free of booby traps to set up my anchor buoy but somehow these things can walk & they walk pretty fast. And I must’ve ‘wandered’ to them too!!! So both of us were in 6 metres of water, laughing ourself silly.
In between dives, I lazed on the beach & made hot chocolate for the both of us. I dabbed him with the towel & watched others on the beach while he would dash into the water again. We would discuss Bible stories & talk about how great God is, reaffirming His love for us. By the end of the second day’s diving, we were totally exhausted & the girls cheered so loudly for him for having completed his Open Water certification. When we retreated to the bedroom for the night, we had one of the most heartwearming pillow-talk ever.
“Jin, what do you think of *this person*?”
“I think he’s a good person but he’s full of himself sometimes. And if he had Christ, he would be better to you & you would not need to be here.”
“Well, partly true but I love what I do, wouldn’t people have to understand & accept that too?”
“Yes, but still, it would be different if they knew Christ & then know you.”
“Jin, you have also been talking down to *another person* lately. He had a different upbringing & he now needs to have a male figure to look up to. You have obviously done more than him & talking about your achievements in a manner that makes him feel inadequate, is not going to do him any good. He would end up feeling lousy & resentful/envious that he can’t do all that you have done. The best way is to encourage him to pick up the sport to his best ability & then share your experiences with him to get him to follow in your footsteps. And the best compliment anyone can give you is when they ask you to show or teach them what you know. Can you do that for him?
“Yes I will. You mean like to show him how it’s done rather than how much I’ve done? What about you? You can teach him also.”
“Yes, dearie. It’s always good to let people share your experiences & the way you have earned them. I’m different, I’m a girl. He needs a guy to show him so that he would have a role model now that his father is not here.”
“You’re right.”
“Jin……”
“Yeah?”
“You know you’re more than just a student to me right?”
“Yeah.” ……………..Seconds later………….”Pam, how’s your butt?”
*Laughter!*
“The spikes are still in there, sweetie, and I think I’ll leave it. It would be ‘our connection.’ *wink!*….Go to sleep now. We still have tomorrow. Nite nite…..”
“Nite nite.”
Jin is my 11 year old student who had been under my tutelage since his mom died of cancer about three years ago. She saw Jesus appear before her in her bedroom a week before she was taken in her sleep. His father is now happily remarried & Little Jin is now a happy Junior Open Water Diver!
