Cataratas de Agua Azul and a lesson learnt

Some time ago one of my vacations was in Mexico, and as always it was traveling from one end to the other visiting or staying in those wonderful remote places far away from the tourist trail.
One exception to the rule was to visit Cataratas de Agua Azul, located between Palenque and San Cristóbal de las Casas in the Chiapas Province.

To cut a long story short it is a series of very beautiful waterfalls that stretches for kilometers, and yes the best part is you can swim in most of them, but not without some risk. Another nice thing about this place during my stay, was that most if the tourists were mainly Mexican, and trust me they are great people & friendliness is second to none.

Well anyway on one day it was time to test the crystal blue waters, and it’s not hard to find a rock to sit on out in the waters, so after a few hours of swimming in the waters and sitting on my own personal rock, the decision was to swim across to mainland and explore the jungle a bit.

It was about halfway towards dry land that cramp overtook my body, and my body began to sink. In the space of 8 seconds my body was taken under, and not a single chance of shouting for help face down.

Realizing the situation & understanding the remote chance of being saved, brings you to another point of learning, and that is not to struggle, amd fear left me for another.

In those few minutes there was absolute peace and a feeling of not being alone, it was almost like being free and moving on, and there was no sound from above to disturb me. Some would say this was a religious experience, but my belief is based upon the experience and there were no angles. As my lungs filled with water my eyes closed, and in my mind there was no regrets.

At that exact moment my hair was pulled tightly & a strong arm was wrapped around my neck, and almost to my own fear was being pulled back towards the surface. As soon as my head broke surface the struggling set in, and the person that held me in his tight grip dragged me to dry land.

Once out of the water he pumped my lungs until the surrounding grass was colored, and then carried me to a quite area and set me against a tree. After that he left me and then returned with two cups of tea, and told me to drink too avoid going into shock again.

As we sat under the tree he told me about himself, and how he was employed as a ranger to patrol the waters. He had decided to walk a route he normally did not walk, and he himself thought it odd at the time. He smiled at this and said with a definite certainty it was not my time, when asked why he said that- his reply was a smile. That smile still remains with me, because it shined with knowledge of perhaps something myself was not allowed to know.

He led me to the water again and told me to get in. He said now we take your fear of swimming away, and we swam for a short while in the shallows to get my confidence back. He was a good man, and will never be forgotten by me.

Looking back on this not just brings a smile upon my face, but something invaluable learnt especially concerning relationships. When we feel out of or depth and the struggling gets to the point of giving up, then don’t give up – just let go, because there is a big difference between the two.

In your relationship be attentive and always show that your support is there, and if ever your partner is in times of trouble, they will know where their lifeguard is to bring them to safety. To your partner you should be seen as a force which is always there, a force that can be depended upon for rescue and shelter.

The waters of life can be very deep, so remain hand in hand with the person whom you have said I love you, because that way you will both keep your balance and avoid the water pulling you under.

Thank you for taking the time to read this.