It was the day before Christmas, and my family and I, were in a taxi heading to Punta Mita. The road was miles and miles long before we even got there, from our hotel in New Vallarta, Nayarit. Outside, you could see that the day was almost ending, and the sky had a orangey red hue, as rich as a tangerine’s. That meant that the sun with its yellow glow was about to disappear.

After arriving to the crowded and small seaport of Punta Mita, we started to search for a boat that could take us to the Marieta Islands. Just as we were looking for a boat, a group of tourists came towards us. In the group, there was a couple of tan, chubby husband and wife. Also there were two silent, dark-skinned Mexicans, and two pale, blond Germans, who their laughter never ceased. The rotund tan man with greasy hair and glasses asked approaching us, “Are you looking for a boat to take you to the Marieta?” “We have been searching for a boat to take us, all day, and we finally found one,” he continued “So maybe we could share the boat with you, if you’d like to come with us whale sighting and to the Marieta”

After hearing his proposal, my dad, a strong man with a pair of glasses and a slight beard asked the guy, “How much will it be?”

“We have 1200 pesos so we need 800 to complete the fee for, two, four, six, eight, ten people,” The big man remarked, counting the money and the people.

After considering the price for a little, my dad gave him the money needed to complete the cost of the trip.
After getting into the boat, we met the boatmen. One of them was a slender, dark-skinned man, whose hair and beard was becoming grey. He wore ragged shorts, an unbuttoned beach shirt and a straw hat. Besides him was an older man, his skin was as wrinkled and as dry as tree bark, resting on the bottom of his nose, was his moustache, which was a dusty cotton. After getting on the boat, wasting years looking for whales and not finding any, my father told the boatmen to take us to the Marieta Islands, which were close by.

This was our first time coming to the Marieta Islands. We did not know how the experience was going to be, so we were a little nervous. The air was getting cooler and the Islands were waiting for our adventure, which was yet to come.

As we were getting closer the world famous Islands, you could see white sea foam, caused by ocean water crashing into the razor-sharp rocks, which could cut through your skin and muscle like butter. I started to feel butterflies in my stomach. Suddenly, the older boatman started to pull the boat’s lever, moving us closer into the shore, yelling in the wind, “Everyone, off the boat.” And before I could process the thought, everyone but me was off the boat.

What happened next, I remember as clear as water, I started to panic. Why do we need to get down so early? What do I do? I thought. I started to feel dizzy. I glanced at the water overboard, it was a dark blue color, which only meant, that the water was very, very deep. I started to hear a loud beating in my head. My forehead was wet. I started to pray, and threw myself overboard, into the arms of the cold and strong sea.

The water was ice cold. I looked down with my diving mask and did not see anything, but complete darkness. The water must have been kilometers and kilometers deep. I felt my chest contracting and I couldn’t manage air into my lungs. I gasped and gasped for air rapidly. Besides, current was so strong that it almost carried me below the boat.

In the distance, I could see a green snorkel with an orange cap. I heard someone heavily panting. My instinct of survival and adrenaline carried me there. When I got there, I realized it was my mom. I noticed that she was in a worse state than I was. Then, I recalled the time when my dad told me my mom almost drowned one time. He said that ever since, when she was near the ocean, her heart started to run and she started to tremble.
I do not know how I did it, but I clasped my mom’s hand tightly and pulled her with all my strength and will. “Let my hand go, so you can get faster where your dad is. I will be okay,” she uttered as she panted and started easing her hand off my hand. I gripped her hand tighter, and I took her to where my dad and my little brother were swimming, trying to enter the rocky and extremely dark tunnel, that led inside the island.

When I got near my dad and my little brother, with lots of effort I shouted from the top of my lungs, “Dad!”
“Hold on to your brother and let me help your mom,” he replied to my call. I then clutched my brother’s hand, and I could see him happily floating in the water looking down with his snorkel, humming excitedly.

I wondered why he was so happy in this difficult time. When my dad got to where my mom was, I let go of her for the first time. But I kept pondering, trying to figure out, what was making my brother so happy. Then I asked him, holding his hand, “Why are you so happy?”

“Look at all the fish!” my brother declared happily.

I looked down the water with my mask, to the see the source of my brother’s happiness. I stared in awe. It was beautiful.

The first thing I noticed was that the water was not dark anymore, it was clear, and I could see the bottom. The water was filled with infinite colors, dancing all around. Those colors were much brighter than I’ve ever seen them in my life. “Look, that enormous puffer fish just passed below me!” I yelled amazed. Then I realized that my fears and preoccupations had just faded.

Suddenly, I heard a voice, “Grab my hand!” I grabbed the person’s hand, and he carried my family and I to the shore. I looked at the person in front of me in the eyes, and he was the same dark skinned man with a straw hat and ragged shorts. He had helped us all with his pair of diving fins, safely to the shore.

Going to the Marieta Islands was an experience, which will linger in my mind for lots of time. The experience was something thrilling. Also, it was challenge, which it’s answer, was just below us. This story will show others that even in the most difficult, and tension-filled moments, happiness is just around the corner. Furthermore, this experience also taught me that in times, where lives are at risk, one puts others above oneself. In other words we take care of other’s lives not thinking about our own. As a matter of fact, this experience has shown me to be calm in these types of situations, in order to easily find the way out. Additionally, passing through this event, has made me a stronger and more mature person. It is amazing that my little brother has taught me to be this way. Seeing him delighted between all the commotions really helped me change the way I see things. Moreover, helping my mother, who is always helping me, has made me realize that it is my responsibility to help my family when I can. Overall having troublesome experiences can really change your life.