Learning to Surf

Hi everybody. School has been hellish so I'm slacking on the posting front. A detailed log of my trip to Florida is in the works, but for now this is a speech I'm going to give at 2:00 tomorrow.

"You can't stop the waves, but you can learn to surf"

                                                                                    Jon Kabat-Zinn

This phrase above all else describes me. It’s doubly appropriate because I was born in California, a place where the surf meets the sand.  Although I moved to Andover MA before I was even 2 years old, my mom has always said that at heart I am truly a Californian.

To be honest, though, I always felt a little uncomfortable presenting myself as being from California, after all I barely remember living there. But a few summers ago, something I did made me feel a little bit better about my native state.

During summer vacation, my family usually goes to NH for a week or two. Looking for a change, my parents decided that this summer we would stay with family friends in Ventnor NJ. You may be thinking to yourself “Nathan why would you want to spend your summer in the state which produces 2/3 of the world’s eggplants?”

I admit it may not seem like the best place to spend a vacation, but in fact the jersey shore has some of the nicest beaches on the east coast. And our friends had a house within a block of the shore.

The culture of Ventnor nj is by any name a beach culture. Every street has a surf shop, and every teen is tan with a t-shirt proclaiming their surf brand allegiances. On a whim I decided to rent a board and give this surfing thing a try.

Board in hand and about to set out for the beach the next day, I received some advice from Kevin, the 54 year old retired surfer who still lives with his parents. He said to me “You’ve gotta trust in yourself and you’ve gotta feel the wave, man.”

As I paddled into the water, I puzzled over this advice. Feel the wave? What is that supposed to mean? Having watched wave after wave go by, and more experienced surfers cruise to the shore, I grew impatient. When would my wave come? Gradually I realized that the point isn’t to wait for the perfect wave, but to seize the opportunity you’ve got. The next swell to come by, I paddled fiercely, and to my surprise felt the wave take me into shore.

I had caught the wave but I wasn’t surfing, I was still lying on my board. I was too afraid of falling off to try to stand up. Emboldened but discouraged I set out to try again. Once again I paddled into the path of the wave and felt it take me. I remembered what Kevin had said, Trust.  You have to trust. In one motion I leapt to my feet.

That day I did something I had never done before. Surrendering to a power greater than yourself and letting it take you is an experience I’ll never forget. Life is nothing but series of waves, and I for one plan to surf.