We’ve all seen those ads for cosmetic surgery, weight loss products and get rich quick scams, usually accompanied by unbelievable before and after photos.
But how would your before and after pictures look if you’d just been on your first cruise? How different would your about-to-embark self seem from the version of you that had just got back from the sea? Could anyone tell them apart?
Well there would certainly be superficial differences. In the after shot, for example, you might be sporting a tan and a ridiculous holiday hat. But if you looked closer, what else might you see?
Not a lot, you say.
Well in that case I suggest you look even closer. I mean really, really close.
Important differences
Still say you can’t see anything? Well congratulations, that’s the right answer.
There is probably nothing else to see because the really important differences will not be immediately visible. They are the things that are likely to have happened to you at a much deeper level.
When I say deeper level, I’m talking about changes in the mind, body and spirit.
Dramatic
If it’s the first time you’ve cruised, these changes, though hidden from view, can be dramatic.
At first, when you arrive back, your family and friends may think you are exactly the same person who they waved goodbye to a week or so ago.
But after spending a few minutes in your company they’ll realise you have undergone a transformation. But not in a scary way, like in a horror movie.
No, the transformation will be positive and life enhancing.
Life on the ocean
Of course it’s true to say that different people can be affected by ocean life in different ways.
When some return from their maiden cruise, they feel elated but tired because there was so much to do both on board ship and at each port.
Not such a surprise perhaps. As a rookie at sea, it’s easy for you to get carried away and overdo things.
Apprentice
But that’s not what I’m thinking about here. If you’re a newly returned apprentice cruiser, I reckon you’ll be aware of something even more significant.
If my experience is anything to go by, you’ll notice that you’ve emerged from your voyaging a wiser and more well-rounded person. You’ll feel more alive and stimulated than ever before.
The rich array of events you’ve witnessed and the variety of escapades you’ve been up to pretty much guarantee that.
Refurbished
I venture to suggest you’ll feel spiritually enriched. Mentally reconstructed. Emotionally refurbished.
Of course we’re all different but I believe your first cruising experience can have all those effects on you. And later ones will only enhance them.
The point is you’ve been diverted from the normal everyday trajectory of your life. You’ve been brought face to face with the awesome reality that you live on a planet that’s very big and very round. And there’s an awful lot of water out there.
Variety and diversity
More importantly, you’ve been reminded just how varied human culture can be and what a fascinatingly diverse species we are.
As a result, you’ll see your own life and the lives of others from a different perspective.
You’ll be able to dive back into your daily life feeling reconditioned and rebooted.
Amazing people
What’s more, you’ll have returned from your holiday having met some amazing people and no doubt having expanded your circle of Facebook friends.
Who knows, you may even be accompanied by a new boyfriend or girlfriend.
Then you can formally announce to anyone who cares to listen, you are now no longer a cruising virgin.
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