Why I Love Surfing

Everyone has their "happy place."  Sarcastically we are all often told to go to our "happy place" if we are stressed or angry.  For some, your "happy place" is cleaning the kitchen.  Maybe its cooking.  A super hard workout.  A great book and a glass of wine.  A nice quiet hike with your dog.  (FYI, if you couldn't guess, all of the above are my "mini" happy places).  

But my REAL happy place is one that really allows me to have those precious moments where the worries of my day and of the world  literally disappear, and I can put life on hold and just enjoy the beauty of God's creation and really bask in His love for me and His grace over my life.  And no, it's not on the back of a horse, contrary to popular belief ;)  Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love riding, but riding isn't about forgetting my cares and problems (especially since it's my job!!).  Riding is about getting to utilize my talents and having fun while doing it.

When things are all messy, or I'm stressed, or sad, or angry, or hurt, or prideful, or selfish, or conceited, one place has the ability to wipe my mental slate clean for a few hours, no matter what.  And that, my friends, is on a surfboard.

I haven't always loved surfing.  I haven't even really been doing it for a long time.  But I can honestly say that there are few things in this world that come close to the peace that I feel out in the water, and I am so blessed to live in a place now where I can surf all the time.

I love getting up at 5 am.  I love grabbing my wax, my wetsuit, and a towel and heading for the beach to get in a session before work.  I love the smell of the ocean and that first freezing step into the water that gets your heart racing.  I love the rush of diving onto your board and paddling out to the line.  I love the stillness and the patience of waiting for a set.  I love looking at the horizon and watching the new sun break through the fog.  I love feeling the energy of the water change as a swell approaches.  I love the anticipation of figuring out the perfect wave to take.  I love the adrenaline of the ride.  I love the aching muscles from paddling and popping up.  I love the way the ocean is never the same.  I love the way that it will humble you abruptly when you get a little too big for your britches.  I love using this as a way to start or end my day. 

When I'm out in the water, everything melts away.  

"Still" and "quiet" are words that no one will ever use to describe me.  But when I'm in the water, I am still.  I am quiet.  I am able to open my heart and hear things that God is trying to teach me that I am otherwise unable to hear because I fill my life with so much activity and noise.  You spend a lot of time sitting on your board waiting for the next set in search of the ever-elusive "perfect wave."  That is a lot of time for God to speak and for me to listen.  

Hebrews 4:9-11 reads "So then, there remains a Sabbath for rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.  Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience.  For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart."

Translation:  work can take over our lives and drown out God's spoken word for our lives.  When you cease work, you are allowing God to work in your heart, and you are allowing yourself the chance to have your heart reached by His word and be refreshed and encouraged.

I love surfing because its not about me.... its about my heart resting from work, and enjoying the blessings that God has given me.  

Whatever your "happy place" is, I challenge you to spend more time there.  Its good for the soul, you know :)

AP