This Island Times blog entry is the fourth in a series of personal essays illustrating how SeaTrek BVI and NAUI have impacted Kasey Fox, former SeaTrek student and intern, who is now a full time staff member, dive instructor and instructor trainer. We thank Kasey for this insightful and heartfelt look into her experience with SeaTrek BVI and NAUI.
In the summer of 2012 I returned to the BVI for my third year with SeaTrek. This summer I was accepted to be a part of the SeaTrek’s hip Internship program (ShIP) and become a NAUI Divemaster. Though I already knew I loved SeaTrek, being a staff member was so much different than being a student. Before this summer, I had a strong feeling that I would be with SeaTrek for many summers to come, but after my first summer working for SeaTrek it was no longer just a feeling. SeaTrek had officially become a huge part of my life, and I was excited for what it would bring in the future.
If you have attended SeaTrek, you know the game “High, Low, Hero.” This game is played almost every night during dinner. If you are unfamiliar to the game, it is quite simple – we basically take turns listing our our high, low, and hero of the day. This is my FAVORITE game. I not only love dinner time because I love food, but I love hearing about the students and staff members’ days. For this blog, I wanted to write it High-Low-Hero style, so here it goes!
Choosing my High of my summer internship is extremely difficult, but when I think back to that summer, one memory always comes to mind: the day I completed my scuba bailout skill. The scuba bailout is one of many skills required to complete the NAUI Divemaster course. The diver must enter the water holding all of their gear, reach the bottom, don their gear, and safely ascend to the surface, establishing neutral buoyancy. If that doesn’t sound scary to you, you are either crazy or you are already a NAUI Divemaster or Instructor. When entering the water, we are told to scream. When you yell, it forces all of the air from your lungs making it easier to sink to the bottom. If you breach the surface before donning your gear, you fail.
“AHHHHHHHHH,” I continued to belt out a scream as I hit the warm Caribbean water. “Yes!! I’m sinking,” I thought to myself. I could no longer scream because my lungs had no air left inside of them. I could feel the adrenaline overwhelming my body, but I couldn’t allow my mind to succumb to the fear. I can’t panic. I can’t fail. I sank about 20 feet until I felt my toes touch the sandy bottom. With my legs tightly wrapped around my rig, I vigorously began to swim with my arms to keep my body from floating to the surface. After a whole lot of struggling to stay
down I was finally in all of my gear. I looked to the safety diver, smiled and waved to let him know I was okay. This was my cue to surface. All I wanted to do was cheer and laugh and celebrate, but I still had to surface and demonstrate neutral buoyancy with no air left in my BC (buoyancy compensator). So I surfaced, established neutral buoyancy and then began to cheer because I had completed my SCUBA bailout on the first try!
Though my summer was filled with highs, being an intern was not easy. There were definitely some Lows. That summer I had worked harder than I ever had in my life. The hardest part is transitioning from a student to a staff member. Growing up, I always had trouble with failure. Any time I did bad in school, or didn’t do as well as I wanted in a track meet, I would really beat myself up. During my summer internship with SeaTrek, I failed a lot. Looking back at it now, I wouldn’t change that, but at the time it was hard to deal with. From tiny mistakes to epic failures, I did them all. Even though it was hard at the time, I have gotten over my fear of failing, and I owe that all to SeaTrek and my experience as a ShIP intern.
So I’ve gone through my High and Low. Now to the very best part- the Hero! Ok so if you know me at all, you already know who my hero is. Any guesses? Ok, I’ll just tell you… Lulu of course! For those of you who don’t know Lulu (real world name Lauryn), she is a Captain with SeaTrek, as well as a NAUI Instructor Trainer, and has been my best friend for the past five or so years. Our friendship really started when I was an intern, and she was the lead female staff member on my boat. Without her as a role model, I can easily say I wouldn’t be as successful with SeaTrek as I am today. Not only did she teach me to become a leader (whether she knows it or not) she has always been a shoulder to lean on and there is no way I could have gotten through my DMC or ITC without her. During my DMC, I was confident with the scuba skills, but when it came to swimming, well let’s just say I’m not in “swimming shape.” Yes, I got my scuba bailout on my first try, but the 900-yard swim took me five tries. Guess who was in the water with me every single try, pushing me to go faster? It was Lulu…my Hero!
While completing my Divemaster training, coupled with an internship at SeaTrek BVI, I gained endless amounts of leadership skills. Not only did my diving skills improve in general, but I also became a more confident and poised leader. Interning for SeaTrek was in no way easy. Let me tell you, it’s tough. But I would do it a million times over because of the skills that I gained. Though working at SeaTrek may not seem applicable to everyday occupations, the experience has made me better in all work environments. My employers outside of SeaTrek are constantly impressed with my work ethic and ability to remain calm, and even positive in stressful conditions. These skills are emphasized continuously in both the ShIP and NAUI Leadership training programs.
After earning my NAUI Divemaster certification, the following summer I chose to attempt the NAUI Instructor course, which is notoriously difficult at SeaTrek. At SeaTrek, we pride ourselves in going above and beyond the NAUI standards, and as a result we produce confident, exceptional NAUI Leaders. To this day, completing my NAUI Instructor certification may have been the hardest thing I have ever done, but I am forever grateful to be a NAUI Leader. Becoming a NAUI Instructor has opened up so many opportunities for me, and I encourage those who have an interest in leadership and instruction to give the NAUI Divemaster and Instructor courses a try!