Risk

Being in the insurance business I have occasion to meditate on the essence of risk. Insurance companies after all are little more than glorified bookies and actuaries are akin to Vegas odds makers. These companies take a look at statistics of say, scuba diving accidents and run them through an algorithm to see exactly how risky it is and how much to charge to insure the risk. This helps explain why scuba diving insurance costs less than $100 per year; it simply isn't that dangerous. Many things we do every day are far riskier than scuba diving. Driving a car, crossing the street, all pose a risk of serious injury or death far exceeding the risk posed by strapping on a tank and regulator and heading for the briny deep. When people die diving, their deaths are often sensational in some odd way, i.e. they're eaten by a shark or left to flounder in the sea when the boat takes off, that sort of thing. This attracts the media like a bull shark to a floundering swimmer and everyone gets the wrong idea.

I’ve decided I’m going to keep diving. This is no small decision now that I am a single parent and thereby have sole responsibility for my son. Nevertheless, the arguable risks inherent in the sport are manageable if one possesses the right training and the right equipment and I believe that I have both. I will admit that there is a part of me that is afraid to leave the house lest something unfortunate happen to me and my son be rendered an orphan, but clearly I can’t live my life hiding from my own mortality. Who knows what the future holds? I retired my crystal ball at the end of last month. Perhaps, as a concession to the odds, I’ll steer clear of cave diving and 240 foot technical wreck diving, but regular trips to deep destinations remain on the agenda.