13/12/12 All Good Things Come To An End

Today is the 12.12.12. The end is near my friends!

 

The end of this last session of the year, the last one before the Christmas break, and for us the end of 12 or 8 or 4 weeks of life on base.

 

As we are preparing ourselves to leave and move towards different horizons, and even though we look forward to our next step, melancholy tends to creep on us while we realize we’re enjoying certain things here for the last time, and realize that we are going to miss it.

 

We’re gonna miss waking up in the peace of our remote base, in a silence only disturbed by some bird songs and our 6 o’clock alarms. We’re gonna miss the ritual morning porridge.

 

We’re gonna miss the exercise provided by the walk to Manta at low tide with a tank on our back and another in our arms, our fins falling down midway. We’re gonna miss the quiet time of being a boat hand in the sun, on our gently rocking boat in the middle of the turquoise waters of BaieTernay.

 

We’re gonna miss Marley, the baby eagle ray that welcomes us back in the Bay after our dives. We’re gonna miss all our beautiful resident turtles that we we’ve been lucky to encounter so many times. We’re gonna miss being stalked by batfishes. We’re gonna miss the thousands of fish in BTC (BaieTernay Centre). We’re so gonna miss diving in BTC!!

 

Maybe we won’t miss the stuck SMB that prevents us from going deeper than 7m or the tape that breaks in the middle of a belt in a fish survey, but we’re definitely going to miss surveying and being a part of marine conservation in one of the most beautiful places on Earth.

 

We’re gonna miss the skipper’s briefing. We’re gonna miss the back rolls. We’re gonna regret the fact that nobody ever gave a loud grunt before the back roll just to see. We’re gonna miss plodging (yes it’s a real word, it means sitting in shallow water chatting) when we’re too lazy to snorkel.

 

We’re gonna miss being covered in staining black stuff every time we enter the kitchen or look at the kitchen or just think about the kitchen. We’re gonna miss the screams when the table turns upside down every time someone stands up. We’re gonna miss beans. And butter beans. And kidney beans.

 

We’re gonna miss the fact that we are so remote that four massive unmanageable hills separate us from the closest civilisation. We’re REALLY gonna miss having this incredible reef on our doorstep.

 

We’re gonna miss Kate’s laughter and Joe’s curls, Emily’s threats that we’re gonna die if we don’t put the dust caps on our first stages, Ro’s enthusiasm when she sees a nudibranch (“best dive EVER!!”), Emily’s smile and talent for making the bar tabs feel nicer, Sam’s funny skipper’s briefings, Lee’s immense knowledge and admiration of the nature that surrounds us, and probably most of all, Chris’ fluffy purple hat.

 

And there is so much more. There were good things, amazing things and maybe some less good things here, but they were all part of life on base and even if we may have been complaining, we’re gonna miss everything. Some time down the road from now, we will remember the details of our daily routine here with a happy sigh and a smile on our face, happy that we’ve been a part of it and that it’s been a part of our lives.

 

A special thought to Kate, who left early this week, to Emily S. who’s finishing her scholarship and will be leaving with us, and of course to Ro, who is leaving GVI Cap Ternay after 3 years to continue her studies. We wish you all the best, and give way to the next generation of volunteers!

Thank you GVI!

13/12/12 All Good Things Come To An End