A Whale of A Whale

There are many legends associated with the sighting of a whale. One Costa Rican morning at Playa Flamingo we awoke to the sight of gatherings on the beach where clumps of early beach crowds had discerned a whale and her calf in the distance. Dark spots on the horizon captured our fascination as well.

But it was later in the day, on our return from a snorkeling expedition, that the boat crew on the Lazy Lizard detected some of those same kind of dark spots, but this time nearby. Cutting back the engines of the boat, we all waited quietly, seeking the presence of these awe-inspiring creatures. All the same, we were startled when the mother whale breeched within 30 yards or so of the boat. One of our fellow passengers had the presence of mind to catch the rapture of the moment.

And we all took that whale's appearance among us as a sign, an omen, a signifier that we were somehow, despite our differences, at one with her nature. The whale became part of us.

There is, one knows not what sweet mystery about this sea, whose gently awful stirrings seems to speak of some hidden soul beneath. . .
Herman Melville, Moby-Dick