Tag: sea turtles

Life After the Spill

Life After the Spill

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A week ago I led a small group experience in Asheville. I showed an audio visual presentation of images from the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill last summer and then we did a meditation visualizing the Earth healing from this and other man-made disasters. Next I showed beautiful images of nature from many places in the world and we did a gratitude meditation. During this time I felt the strong connection humans have with the planet and a flow of gratitude from the Earth as we sat in silence, in stillness cultivating appreciation and love.

Today, as I was paddling my SUP board on Mobile Bay dolphins swam under the board, flocks of pelicans flew overhead, and small mullet splashed in front of me. What a different experience from a year ago.

Last June 13 I was walking the beaches documenting oil washing ashore in Alabama and grieving the unfolding disaster, still spewing unknown amounts of crude into the Gulf of Mexico. As I walked the shores I expected few shore birds and little marine life to survive. I felt as if I was attending a wake each time I visited the beach. And certainly I was for the thousands of birds, marine mammals, sea turtles and fish that died. And for the 11 men who died. It was so devastating to witness this tragedy. Each blog post felt like a eulogy.

But today, there is life on Mobile Bay–swimming under the water, flying over it, and paddling on the surface. Gratitude abounds within me as I acknowledge these signs of recovery.

Yet I know every place on the Gulf Coast is not so fortunate. Some areas are still experiencing heavy oiling in marshes. There are still large tar balls washing ashore and in the local Mobile newspaper, I read an article stating that local officials know there are large oil mats on the bottom just offshore of some major tourist beaches. They are trying to figure out how to remove the oil but are waiting until after ‘tourist season.’ In the meantime, if a hurricane comes ashore, who is to say what the outcome will be.


There is much work to be done on the Gulf Coast to return it to health and there is much to be thankful for. I believe we must remember the spill so we can use it as a reminder that renewal energy is an absolute MUST in our country, in our world. Also, we still have cleanup to do and much oil to remove that remains in the ecosystem. Finally, I believe the spill is an opportunity to recognize the value of such beautiful and amazing resources found along the Gulf Coast and in all of nature. This man-made disaster is a reminder that we must work diligently to protect nature, refrain from exploiting natural resources, and be good planetary stewards.

Today, I am grateful for dolphins, pelicans, fish and all life that slowly recovers from the toxins released last year. My friend Brandon also posted on gratitude today and so I join him in promoting awareness and gratitude for the amazing world in which we live.

Ballet of the Sea Turtles

Ballet of the Sea Turtles

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Our group of seven submerged into the Blue Hole. White sand on the bottom illuminated the massive, silver tarpon hanging along the wall. I counted almost fifty. Then I looked to the center of the hole and there were at least fifty more of the big fish lazily watching as we quietly moved along the reef.

We spent about 20 minutes playing in this beautiful spot then the dive master had us line up shoulder-to-shoulder and ascend to the top of the reef where the strong surge made forward movement impossible when it pushed against us. We quickly got into the rhythm of the ocean as waves pushed across thousands of sea fans and beautiful soft corals. It doesn’t take too many attempts at trying to kick against such strong surge to realize that to pause is to gain greatly. When the surge lessened and then pulled back, we could literally fly forward across the reef. I looked across my right shoulder at one point and noticed that all of us were kicking in perfect unison. I thought we looked like synchronized dancers flying over a living dance floor.

As I breathed and kicked, breathed and paused, I felt perfectly in sync with the Ocean. My body and mind was ‘forced’ to conform to the rhythm of the waves, of Her movement. There was a feeling of total at-one-ness with the massive Ocean. So in tune with Her, so truly in Love with the Ocean was I, that contentment and peace was experienced on a visceral level.

Back and forth, push and pull, to and fro the Ocean moved me. To my core, the very center of who I am She rocked and reminded me that She is my Mother. She is that from which all life on Earth comes.

As we floated and kicked above the sea fans, sea turtles began to rise among us. They slowly rose up from their hiding places, looked around at the diver ballet, and then effortlessly continued to the surface to breathe. From every direction these gentle beings appeared, swam within our troop, and then did their own dance into the blue. Sometimes there were three or four sea turtles swimming around us at once.

Fifty-one minutes can change a person’s outlook. Dancing with sea turtles in blue water during that 51 minutes can forever alter a person’s life.

Finding Center

Finding Center

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I just spent a week unplugged from the internet, email, Facebook, my iPhone, TV, and radio. On my recent dive trip to Bonaire I made a conscious decision to let go of my electronic connection to the world in order to facilitate a deeper connection to the Earth. What a lesson this provided…and a healing.

My first couple of days found me unable to connect with the beauty, the amazing life found on this beautiful desert island and under the saltwater surrounding it. It felt like a part of me was missing-in-action. The intensity of the past year of documenting the oil spill and recovery at the Gulf Coast had created so much grief and anger within me…about how humans treat the planet, how we are greedy, and put money ahead of almost everything. Swimming in the sea of dark emotions was blocking me from diving into the bliss of the ocean.

After my first dive, I sat on the patio in silence with a feline friend that adopted me. She curled up in the chair next to me and closed her eyes. I followed her lead and dove into the silence within myself. As I sat in stillness–breathing in, breathing out–I started to come home to my own skin. I found my center. And it was good.

Who will act as the shaman that helps retrieve a lost piece of the soul?

The next day I revisited a dive site that has special meaning for me. A few years ago, in the silence of the blue, I had a very life-changing experience there that I wrote about in Sharks On My Fin Tips.

“Lost in my blue-water reverie, I let my mind flow in sync with the movement of the water….Everywhere I looked life was evident…As I moved, I absentmindedly started to hum a tune….It seemed to come from my heart…..The more I droned, the stronger the emotion became until I felt a constriction in my throat. The sensation was so strong I had to stop humming and take a deep breath. When I halted I heard an answering refrain from somewhere outside myself. Without hesitation I knew it to be the song of the Ocean. The consciousness of the Mother Ocean was reaching out to me, tapping my heart with Her liquid fingers. It was Her song I had been singing….I hung motionless in the water column, overcome with the sweetest love I had ever felt.” (pages 142 & 143 condensed).

Even after four years, the memory of my experience was strong as I floated in bliss, surrounded by saltwater, surrounded by love.

Later that day I visited the south end of the island. The power of the surf was strong. I stood on sharp rocks breathing in the beauty, the strength of the Ocean. Once again, I felt Her reach out with saltwater fingers and touch me. In that moment I felt as if I truly came home to myself. I raised my arms and accepted Her gift. Rock me in your loving arms Great Mother. Thank you.

So the week continued, with each day bringing new experiences that provided a pathway to my center. Tomorrow I will write about the sea turtle ballet I participated in, but now it is time to unplug.

Diamonds in the Web

Diamonds in the Web

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I sit here in the shade of pine trees at Gator Lake and allow the breeze to cool me after the long hike through the refuge on the sandy trail. I hear the Gulf roaring across the lake as the drone of insects sounds in the surrounding marsh. Haze from salt spray, laden with particles of oil, blurs the tree line and I realize that even here, a half mile from the breaking waves, I am breathing air that carries molecules of benzene, hydrogen sulfide, toluene, xylene, and who knows what else from MC252 oil well.

What will be the long term effect on the marshes, the beaches, and ecosystems? What will be the consequences we cannot see from here but are lurking in the future? What happens to all of the workers who spent twelve hour days in 100 degree heat breathing contaminated air at its worst?

There are so many strands in the web of life, in these fragile ecosystems along the Gulf Coast. So many intricate aspects to such a rich gathering of life force in the Gulf, saltwater marshes, and inland habitats. If only one part of the living system was injured, the stronger parts could support it and nurture it back to health. Unfortunately, every part of this precious place is affected and the confounding thing is we simply have no idea how badly it is injured. Not yet anyway.

Take, for instance, the oil-soaked sea oats. Will the seeds grow after being coated in oil? The primary dune line, where the sea oats grow, is the first defense against storms. If sea oats do not reproduce due to the oily mist saturating them, what will become of the dune line? Not this year, but 3 years from now.

And what about the coquina shells that have been long-gone from many beaches since the spill? They are beginning to come back in some areas but what is the long-term effect of oil on their genetics? Will they be able to reproduce when constantly exposed to toxins found in crude oil? (And yes, the oil is still washing up, it’s still in the Gulf…weathered but present). We don’t know, do we?

There is suspicion that blue fin tuna’s reproduction may not have happened this summer due to the spill. The Gulf is where they migrate to breed. They were already in decline. What happens to them now? So many unanswered questions. So many unknowns. So maddening, this waiting. This prayerful waiting.

I sit here feeling the breeze kiss my sweaty face with all of these questions rumbling through my mind. What will this place look like five years from now? Will nature recover from this inundation of toxins? What species will survive and which ones won’t? I ask again, What will it take for humans to wake up, to remember our intimate connection to nature? To remember that what we do to nature ultimately determines our fate, especially the fate of our grandchildren. Will we, as a species, ever put aside our selfishness and grow into responsible adults?

My grief runs deep but it is not rooted on just the oil spill or the mining disasters all over the world or other human-generated catastrophies and assaults to the planet. The seed of my grief is the apathy and ignorance of one species–and I am a member of it.

Each of us is a diamond in the web of life. Each crab, every stingray, sea turtle, fish, bird, and plant are jewels in this sacred web. When one strand breaks, many suffer. We are diamonds in the web, let us shine with the light of awakening consciousness!

Turtle Prayers

Turtle Prayers

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Today the Deepwater Horizon Incident Joint Information Center released a plan formed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service, NOAA-Fisheries and the Florida Wildlife Commission to translocate an anticipated 700 sea turtle nest eggs this season along the Florida Panhandle and the Alabama Gulf Coast. This is not an event to be taken lightly as nest disturbance risks killing the eggs; however, given the oiled beaches and waters, biologists think this is the best plan for the potential hatchlings.
In this extraordinary plan, permitted surveyors search the beaches at night for sea turtle tracks. Since females come on land only to lay eggs, the tracks lead to nests. The nests are marked and left to incubate until a point is reached in the incubation cycle where disturbance is less likely to injure eggs.

Experts will then place the eggs in special containers and transport them to a secure, climate-controlled location. Once the hatchlings emerge, they will be released on the east-central coast of Florida.

Under normal conditions a retrieval, removal and remote hatching of an entire season’s nesting would never be considered but given the unlikely survival of hatchlings due to oil in the water and on the shore, scientists feel they must make this drastic move.

The majority of sea turtles nesting along the northern Gulf Coast are loggerheads but we also have Kemp’s ridley, leatherback and green turtles.

As you go through your day say a little prayer for the mother turtles coming ashore to lay eggs. They are moving through toxic waters onto shores that are sometimes covered in oil and dispersant chemicals. Just the task of surviving to lay eggs this year is difficult. Then…say more prayers for the babies as they lay safely tucked inside their eggs. May their ocean dreams be filled with much love.

Image of green sea turtle in rehab with helpers Hans (holding turtle) and Tim Tristan, DVM …Texas.