Splicetoday

Writing
Sep 09, 2021, 06:28AM

I Nearly Drowned in Maui

And the man responsible just shrugged and swam away.

Image 7.jpeg?ixlib=rails 2.1

In 1994, I traveled with several friends to Maui. Midway through the trip, we drove four hours to Hana on the backside of the island. We visited the Seven Sacred Pools, a series of ponds and waterfalls stretching from the mountain to the sea. At the lowest pool bordering the ocean, the pond was split in two by a reef.

As I walked atop the reef, I noticed a Hawaiian man diving into the pool, disappearing, then reappearing on the other side of the rocks.

“How’d you do that,” I asked.

“There’s an underwater tunnel beneath the rocks. You can swim from one side to the other.”

“How long is it,” I asked.

“About 25 feet.”

“How deep?”

“Maybe six feet,” he said.

“You think I can do it?”

“Can you hold your breath for 30 seconds?”

“Yes.”

“Then you can do it.”

I told my friends I was going to swim through an underwater tunnel to the other side of the rocks. One friend reminded me I was Jewish, not Hawaiian.

“Jews aren’t great swimmers,” he said.

“How about Mark Spitz,” I replied.

“Just be careful.”

I took a deep breath, dove beneath the water and looked for a tunnel. The water was murky and I couldn’t see anything. I came up for air and asked the Hawaiian diver where to find the tunnel opening.

“Feel the rocks with your hands. When you feel a large gap, that’s the tunnel. One you’re inside the tunnel, look for a dim light and swim towards it.”

I dove again, pressing my hands along the underside of the rocks. An opening appeared. I swam forward, my hands in front of me feeling the rocks. Suddenly, I panicked. I kicked hard propelling myself forward. My head slammed into the reef. I became disoriented. I tried turning around but the tunnel was too thin. I swallowed water.

I dove deeper and swam into a dark opening. The water became cold. I felt I was running out of air. My shoulders scraped against the rocks as if the opening was getting smaller. Filled with terror and thinking I was about to die, I swam into the darkness. A faint light appeared. I moved toward it, kicking and flailing.

The water grew warmer. I looked up and saw the sun shining through the surface. I kicked upwards and my head exited the water. I took a deep breath and coughed. I looked atop the reef and saw my friends staring down at me.

I learned I’d been underwater for nearly two minutes. I sought out the Hawaiian and screamed at him, “You asshole. You nearly killed me.” He shrugged and dove back into the water.

Discussion

Register or Login to leave a comment