When I attempt to write about yesterday’s dolphin encounter…it’s challenging. I remember the sleek bottlenose and spotted dolphins swimming among our group. I recall the two male bottlenose doing their best to mate with the spotted females, getting tail-slapped and bitten by said females and then turning to each other for ‘comfort’ after their rebuke.

It’s difficult not to remember the protruding penises but I am grateful for the restraint they showed by keeping the majority of their fourteen inch ‘private parts’ hidden. Perhaps I am still blushing.

As I was floating among the amorous males, I remembered stories of male dolphins attempting to mate with human females and so I reminded them of my middle-age status. Stories of aggression toward human males came to mind. They can ram, rake their teeth or bite or heaven forbid, mount a human in foreplay. Yes…these stories filtered through my mind.

But mostly I was suspended in a sea of playful thoughts and appreciation for the profound beauty of both species of cetacean that interacted with us. Wild, unfed animals that chose us to learn from and play among.

After motoring along the bank for over an hour off the coast of Bimini, I spotted their gray dorsal fins heading toward the boat. Everyone quickly got ready and slipped into the water in snorkeling gear. It was beautiful to see the sleek, bullet-like bodies glide through clear water.

Laughter erupted several times from a deep, inner palace of light. The dolphins reminded me of this treasure within that can be easily forgotten.

A friend reminded me a while ago that we actually have to choose to be happy. I thought about his words a lot yesterday and the truth of that idea resonated deeply. I can choose to be happy….at any time, any where.

The day began with an intense headache, the kind that generally lasts for days. After a female spotted dolphin buzzed me (literally) twice, I realized the headache had vanished. When she approached, she stopped and her sonar clicks were so strong I felt them in my body but especially inside my head. It felt as if my brain responded to her intense clicks…like I ‘heard’ them inside my head. In fact, almost 24 hours later I can still feel the vibration within my skull.

I knew she was scanning me and have no idea what she ‘saw’ but the encounter was fascinating. I had taken ibuprofen before leaving the dock but generally it only takes the edge of pain away. It was a nice surprise to realize I was pain-free.

My great love is marine mammals. Manatees connect with me in a very soulful  place. Humpback whales, when they choose an up-close encounter with me, touch a deep place of peace within my heart and so my heart expands. The dolphins opened my mind, expanded it and it feels as though they activated an intensely deep-mind connection with them that will continue to unfold.

When I am in the watery realm of marine mammals, open to connection and communion, there is mutual learning. I enter into the experience excited to learn, eager to expand my understanding of other sentient beings. They seem inquisitive and therefore learn from me through our connection.

Oneness and understanding is cultivated in the fluid reality. I am not in the water to ‘get the shot’ but rather to commune with other species and gain understanding. If a good photograph results from the encounter…well, that’s just icing on the proverbial cake.