The Waves Keep Coming – What Will your Story Be?

It was wet, air heavy, mist pronounced, as if it were a distinguished guest upon opening the truck doors. That first deep breath was only a warmup for what was to come. A jacket, Hah! Not gonna need it where we’re going. The hollow ding of metal-on-metal led our eyes to the flag perched high, a good thirty feet at the edge of the sand, northwest winds…Perfect.  No words needed, just a smile and a race to the truck-bed. This November morning called for some rubber, the 3/2 will do, the water was still fairly warm from a stubborn summer, no complaints here.  After quick glance south into the blue brownish abyss, the decision was easy, long board it was, wax on, and the Rocky-Apollo sprint into the water was underway – minus the short shorts (I just can never find my size).

With enough familiarity and repetition (as in anything) you begin to acquire the skills to read the water prior to jumping in.  As the hollowed epoxy board met one of natures most natural forces it was just another day to get some reps (physical and mental) – as we all know practice make perfect . A light rain joined the party on the paddle out bringing a fresh smell to the salty water, I enjoyed a few rides, each time  listening-in on the jokes “water” told his buddy “land”, spoiler –  each one ended with water slapping land on the back in LOL fashion. As I journeyed back after the third ride, the rain piercing the water was evident, “Ohh Noo, better go get the umbrella” my buddy chuckled, paddling entered autopilot and my mind began to float, like a seagull on-top of waves, who’d figure.  I’d like to say I was in some type of peaceful meditation or some prolific thought but in my effort to be “realer than real” it was probably some sort of self-contemplation about a text I sent the night before or maybe what to eat for dinner, anyhow it’s a waste of precious resources trying to remember (and why do that!).  I snapped-back to the present after hearing a bird call, but its source was human, it was one of a few whistles (and sounds) that we’ve created to communicate on the noisy ocean, as Brian Fanatana  would say “Sixty percent of the time, it works every-time”.   It’s actually quite effective within my group of friends, developed many years ago in the “teenage era” as a way to communicate  while sneaking through backyards, beaches, basements and the occasional farm.  Road sodas in hand when we were supposed to be drinking regular sodas (Side-Note : Don’t drink Soda!).  These calls could be translated in a few different ways but adding in some situational awareness it meant “Heads Up”, and as I glanced up the situation was quite evident – Big Waves! Funny thing about nature, and more specifically the ocean, tides can turn at a blink of an eye.  Autopilot turned to overdrive as consciousness returned and the dash to get beyond the break-zone was on.

An unstoppable force meets an unmovable object! Only, I was moveable, very moveable, too moveable. In-fact, in the scheme of things I had rather little control of where I went, I was simply an ant in a swimming pool, fluttering around at the mercy of each raindrop that powered down from the sky.  Typically if your well-positioned you can see a set approaching and strategically set yourself up for an experience of pure gnar, but when your belly-down your vision is direct and cut-off by the first wave. From the frame I was staring through, this picture certainly wasn’t pretty. I saw my buddy- a few yards ahead- meet the rising wave and suddenly disappear, good for him now I was up. We met at the peek, it curled as I powered up and with one last push I propelled through,  straight into empty air like a breaching humpback, I un-gracefully slammed down on the other side, but board and body were in-tack. “Whoa!”

I hit the break-zone and powered through the rest of the set, in the process my buddy re-emerged. It was a true Gandalf reuniting with Bilbo moment…

Made it!

The paddle to meet up was one of those true slow-motion experiences, just ten minutes after the metaphoric first pitch my arms were calling to the bullpen, but before the pitching coach could come out to stall, I found myself being propelled up a wave not half the size of any in the prior set.  It became a blatant truth, as the peek plowed into my head that I was taking a trip under. This very-average wave cracked me not in the jaw but with a fist that easily covered the surface of my entire head.  I haven’t experienced a force this powerful prior or since, and it sent me in a head-over-heels tumble underwater.  I’ve been in this tumbling state plenty of times but this was they first I was truly disorientated, taken out by an average wave on a cloudy day.

After regaining my barrings from a good 15 seconds under, adrenaline rushed through my body and its top agenda-item? AIR!

As I breached (in a much less elegant way as before), I reached for my leash and pulled in my board for support. Ears ringing, mouth numb, my first instinct was to see if I had any teeth left. Teeth – check, looking up I could see my friends mouth moving but nothing processable, not to my surprise I was bleeding, like a fighter after taking a right-hook to the jaw I was cut. I’m tough,  but hanging around bleeding in the ocean is just plain stupid, after an eventful fifteen minutes on a brisk November morning I was happy to pack up the day’s experience and take the ride home.

Frame Your Waves

There are countless things that you – a single person in this world of ever-growing organisms-  will simply not have control over. These events will or won’t happen despite your best efforts to create or stop them.  In the grand scheme of things, we’re all just animals, inhabiting a one-of-a-kind planet across a continuum of space-time.  Whoa, I know right. Each moment in time is different for each organism, a moment of bliss for one, may be one of shock for another. A moment of helplessness for a man in Singapore could be one of empowerment for a women in France.

Life is Life, sometimes you can see its waves as they approach,  others you’ll get blindsided or humbled by its power. It’s a game of real reactions, planning is good but doing is better. Visualizing can help, but experiencing drives results.  And Mindset Rules All.  You always have options when an unstoppable wave is approaching:

• Paddle Head On,  Right Through the Peek
• Go Around, where it’s Less Powerful
• Duck-Dive Under, Playing a Game of Luck & Skill
• Turn Around and Take the GOD DAMN Ride!

Depending on the situation, each option can be the safe bet or the risky endeavor.  Sure, You’ll Win Some but more importantly – You’ll Lose!  And how you file those losses will make the difference.  When you fail, find ways to frame it in a positive way, soon losses and wins will be one and the same, you’ll be on that Charlie Sheen #winning level. If a day comes and you’re unexpectedly punched in the face by an average wave on a rainy November morning, It’s a win! Your alive, breathing, and writing about it.  The ability to Frame Losses in a positive light will give you riches that the Forbes 100 would envy.

I leave you with this, time will keep moving, waves will keep crashing, while your wiping out someone else may be taking the ride of their lives. With all that, take ownership of the things that you can control and for everything that is out of your hands, remember- You always have final say on how you FRAME the event. Deep Breaths!  If your lucky enough to be in a position where you can access this article and understand these words, you’ve already won a whole lot more then you may believe.

Take it Away Bob:

P.S – While writing this I just went down an internet rabbit-hole on the Space-Time Continuum and quite frankly it makes you feel pretty much every feeling in the book. It’s insane that we’ve (Einstein) even came up with the theory, let alone proved it, over-and-over.  Check it out if you Dare…