Dolphins

Last Sunday I have done something exceptional. Together with T. I participated in a program called " Closer to dolphins" in the dolphinarium at Harderwijk. For some reason dolphins have started to mean a lot to me, and this was the ultimate way to get closer to them and experience their energy in real life. We had to get up early, because we had to register at the reception of the Dolphinarium at 9 am. Here we met the other two people who would join us that day. Both T. and I tok our partners so they could film and take pictures. We were picked up by one of the dolphin trainers, a lady named Bianca. She gave us a short explanation of the day, told us it wasn't sure what we were going to do yet since that depended on the dolphins. Every one of these programs is different to keep it interesting for the dolphins. After this short explanation the participants had some tea, and told a bit about themselves and why they were there. The other two people seemed really nice, and we shared something about our beliefs and totem animals. After this we had to change into wetsuits. Let me tell you, it isn't easy. For me it was a great motivator to start my diet properly, lol. After we all changed and rinced, we started out by meeting the other trainer Paul. We also made our first contact with a dolphin. For the fotoshoot moment we could shake flippers with Prince.I can't really explain what a dolphin feels like, slippery and firm at the same time. After this it was time to split up into two groups. T. and I remained with Bianca so we could go into the water and meet one of the dolphins in its own territory. Bianca explained what we should do, and Maaike the dolphin came up really close. We could pet and tickle her. You could tell she really enjoyed it, her noises were so enthousiastic....great clicks and squeals. She did some tricks and was rewarded with handclapping, fish and toys. We learned a lot about dolphins and I really connected with Maaike. It was like she looked straight into my soul.I can't wait to see the pics and the film. After this we joined up with the others to meet some more dolphins. All of us were allowed to give them some orders by handsignal. T. made them roll over onto their backs and display their tummy. I made them stick their tails out of the water.It was great fun. When we were done with this we had to go change and shower. When we were all dressed again we had some tea and a muffin while talking about things. We all really enjoyed it, it was a lot to take in. We were also handed the pics of our fotoshoot with Prince. It was great to be able to take something home straight away. T. and her husband had to go home soon after, but D. and I stayed to watch the dolphins some more. I sat and enjoyed their underwater acrobatics, and we watched a feeding and a short show. I was watching Maaike, and she was one happy dolphin! The dolphin energy was really amazing. I am still feeling connected, whole and very energetic. They really belong with me, I have found my totem animal. I can still feel their presence in my belly and in my soul. T.also really enjoyed it, she did not think about her illness for a moment!!! To me, it is still very hard to explain and express what I feel and what I experienced. It was a feeling of connectedness, acceptance, maybe even homecoming. I know I am connected to dolphins in a deep way, and they will be with me forever. Especially Maaike....