Long before I became an actual certified diver, I had longed to dive The Great Barrier Reef. It was just so beautiful... full of color and life in a way that defied reality. Once I became a certified diver in 1986, diving The Great Barrier Reef was at the top of my bucket list.

Twenty-five years later, I finally got to check it off my list.

And it ended up being a bit of a disappointment. Thanks to Cyclone Yasi blowing through eight months earlier, there was significant damage to the reef and, while still beautiful and amazing, it didn't live up to the pre-Yasi splendor I had seen in photos and video.

I chalked it up to bad timing and promised myself that I'd return to Australia one day after the reef had recovered.

Except that isn't happening.

If anything, the reef has only gotten worse since I visited.

In an article I read today, 50% Of The Great Barrier Reef is now dead or dying and 93% is bleached.

I don't know if there's any chance of this horrible situation reversing itself, so I guess I should be thankful that I got to see what I saw when I saw it.

Because you just never know.

So now I'm starting to think I should start being thankful for everything that I got to see when I saw it.

And I try to be.

It's the places I haven't yet seen that's terrifying me now.

Will they even exist when I finally get around to going?