Surfing: A Month of Reconnecting!

“We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea, whether it is to sail or to watch – we are going back from whence we came.”
– John F. Kennedy

I absolutely love this quote because it expresses exactly how I felt at the end of August. When I started this months adventure, I originally planned to go camping every weekend. As the month kept creeping closer, I started to feel a bit overwhelmed. After meditating on this a bit, I realized that the intent of this passion project isn’t to stress myself out, but to elicit excitement and joy. For this reason, I changed the topic of August to just “be outside more”. I was able to go camping with 20 friends, take (another) boat ride, explore new parks, find hidden beaches, hike with my pets, and learn how to surf. Even though all the activities yielded me with amazing memories and experiences, surfing was the one that stuck out to me most. For this reason, I’ve gone ahead and adjusted this months topic to be around surfing and what I learned.

It’s funny how the universe works because at the beginning of this month, I was talking with a new friend and he suggested that he teach me surfing. I freaked out a little bit, trying to find any good excuse to say no. Once I took a minute to pause and realize how this opportunity just fell in my lap during my month of wanting to be outside more, I stayed true to the goal of my Year of Adventures, and responded with “let’s go with yes!”

The moment I got in the ocean, I immediately felt at home. It was so comforting and beautiful sitting on the board waiting for waves. The hardest part at first was just trying to catch a wave – it’s quite sad how out of breath I got! Eventually, my friend decided to give me a push and this was probably the best wave I caught. I was able to get enough speed ahead of the wave to successfully stand up, albeit it was only for a moment, I was still very excited! On pretty much every other wave, I would crash. However, I’d get back on my board and paddle back out for the next wave. Reflecting now, surfing is a good activity to practice accepting failure. Even though it was frustrating when you would fall, you just have to keep getting back on the board and paddling out to try again. Best attitude to apply to any situation in your life.

After my first session, I took a moment to catch my breath and enjoy the ocean. As I was sitting on my board, enjoying my surroundings, a pod of 15 dolphins swam by all of us. It was serene and powerful. I was then filled with immense gratefulness for the town I live in and the opportunities that I get to experience. It made me reflect on why I have avoided the ocean or at least not made it a priority in my life. I think, as with many people, the biggest thing that has kept me out of the water is my fear of sharks. By surfing this past month, I’ve been able to face this fear head on. I’ve made some great progress, but it’s definitely still an ongoing fear I’ll have to continue working though. I continue to occasionally frog up on the board when I freak myself out while looking at the water…. don’t judge.

To wrap up my final surfing day, I hit a few more waves. At this point, the waves were a bit bigger then I should have been on for a first time surfer, but I consider myself a pretty ballsy chick, so go big or go home right? Well the answer to that is go big, wipe-out, then go home. I now have an understanding of why so many people talk about how powerful the ocean is because I was definitely at the whim of the wave. I can’t help but giggle at what I must of looked like when I wiped-out… bathing suit top almost coming off, trying to stand up and getting taken down by yet another wave, my hair making me look like the girl from the ring. Once I finally stood up and caught my breath, my friend was like….. “uh, you good?” I just laughed and just said “yup, but I thinks it’s time for my break.” Just like in life, you need to know when it’s time to take a breather, so after this wipe-out, I decided to call it for the day.

Oddly enough, this didn’t deter me from wanting to go surfing again. I actually found myself wanting to be in the ocean as much as possible. I started going to the beach after work just to take a swim or going to the park to meditate and listen to the waves. It was like I found a piece of myself I didn’t know was missing.

“The sea, once it casts its spell, holds one in its net of wonder forever.”
– Jacques Yves Cousteau

The next time I went surfing was with my girl friend. She had seen my post about my first surf experience and reached out to go together. This was another one of those moments that I was grateful for the universe plopping in my lap the next step. She had an extra board for me to use and was happy to help teach me. We planned a few days to go, but the ocean was just too mellow. She needs to rest too. We then finally found a day that seemed to have some small waves. It was nice to experience a more mellow day where you would just sit and chat to the person you were with. It was really nice to not only be doing a new activity but to also be gaining a new connection with someone.

My final surfing experience was with another friend at a 3rd location. I had an absolute blast this day because both him and I are new to surfing, so it was the blind leading the blind. Lots of laughter occurred! It was also probably hilarious for people watching us as we paddled around the ocean for a while trying to find the best spot to post up. I will say though, even though this was only my third time, I already felt I had a better handle on how to read the waves, when to start paddling, and when to stand up. On top of practicing my own surfing, I was grateful that I was able to share the tips I recently learned with my friend. I think the transfer of knowledge is such a beautiful, karmic thing. You were given knowledge freely and now you get to pass that knowledge to someone else freely.

Those were all the surfing experiences I could squeeze into this month. I’ll 100% be continuing to learn how to surf and the next step is to buy my own board! Beyond surfing, I’ll also be spending more time at the beach and in the ocean period. I realized this past month that for living in Santa Barbara for a total of 10 years now, I have taken for granted whats in my back yard. I’m grateful that my month of August naturally morphed itself into the adventure it became because I was able to re-connect to the ocean. The ocean is a powerful rejuvenating resource. She is beautiful, comforting, invigorating, and intense. Next time you find yourself near and ocean, remember to take a minute and appreciate her vastness, the life source she gives us, and the beauty she emits.

“Nature’s beauty is a gift that cultivates appreciation and gratitude.”
– Louie Schwartzberg