Then it was time to fight the waves in a ragged line for 40 minutes, looking down at exotic coral formations and disturbing entire fish families that were just minding their own business. My youngest son reported that he saw a flounder, a sting ray and a skate. I saw a lot of the horizon because I was surfacing frequently to gulp fresh air in a vain effort to quiet my stomach.
As a result, I noticed at one point that I had become seriously separated from the group. I put on my snorkel and started to swim vigorously. And that's when I saw underwater, between the far-off boat and me, Mr. Extremely Large Barracuda.
He had a menacing coldness in his eye, at least the one assessing me. He didn't appear to be swimming so much as suspended motionless in my path, like a huge metallic parking garage gate with teeth. His body language told me to swim the long way around. I did.
