Open Water Whale Rescue

Recently I received an email chain letter from a friend. Usually I glance at them quickly and move on to the myriad of other emails in my inbox…….but this one caught my attention.

It was the story of a whale and her rescuers…

The Remarkable Whale

A female humpback whale had become entangled in a spider web of crab traps and lines. She was weighted down by hundreds of pounds of traps that caused her to struggle to stay afloat. She also had hundreds of yards of line rope wrapped around her body, her tail, her torso, a line tugging in her mouth.

A fisherman spotted her just east of the Faralon Islands (outside the Golden Gate) and radioed for help. Within a few hours, the rescue team arrived and determined that she was so bad off, the only way to save her was to dive in and untangle her — a very dangerous proposition. One slap of the tail could kill a rescuer.

They worked for hours with curved knives and eventually freed her. When she was free, the divers say she swam in what seemed like joyous circles. She then came back to each and every diver, one at a time, nudged them, and pushed gently, thanking them.

Some said it was the most incredibly beautiful experience of their lives.

The guy who cut the rope out of her mouth says her eye was following him the whole time, and he will never be the same.

This email caught my attention not only due to the incredible feats of the divers and the actions of the whale…….it caught my attention as a true reflection of how at different points in our lives we may be the whale in need of rescue or may be the diver rescuing the whale. It also caught my attention as an example of the “Action of Remarkability!”

The whale was in a state of peril…..destined to die as she had become overcome by the strings, traps, ropes and netting that had invaded her world. She didn’t ask for these things to become a trap in her open water world…….other forces had invaded and polluted her home.

The divers had a choice to make. They could leave the whale to die rather than risk their very lives to rescue her, or they could take a leap of faith to save the animal. They could ACT!

What would you have done? Would you have turned the other way and leave the whale on her own to struggle? Would you have placed yourself in a precarious position to save the whale as the divers ultimately did? What ACTION would you have done?

Have you ever felt like the whale in need of rescue? Have you ever been the diver and pushed yourself to help another?

Part of the practice of remarkability is ACTION……..not once, not twice, but doing it over and over again. Taking your gift and giving it to others. Not keeping it to yourself, but finding ways to share it with others!! Giving your gift to others may free them from the ropes and straps that are holding them back……..if you don’t practice ACTION the world loses. If you don’t ACT on your gifts to the world and sharing your life’s purpose with others, others may never be free of what entangles them!

The divers had the knowledge and the expertise to dive and work in the ocean environment……they pushed themselves beyond what may have been comfortable to ACT to save the whale. Because of their ACTION the whale survived! If I had to guess, each of those divers would do the same action again and again……..sharing their gift of rescue with other entangled sea creatures……..practicing remarkability…….

What choice do you make today? Will you sit by and watch others in need? Will you ACT to share your gift that someone else in the world needs to receive? Will you be the whale? Will you be the diver?

I encourage you to ACT!! Today!!!

Glenna

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