This Is the Time I Have, so This Is When I Surf

It’s lovely that people can choose when to surf based on the forecast and once maybe every two months, I get to do this in a limited way, get to pick Saturday morning over Sunday morning, say, and it’s lovely. Charmed.

But most of the time, I’ve got a sliver of time I’m carving out between dropping kiddos and leading meetings so I’m going in the sliver of time that I can seize. Whether the wind is up, whether the seaweed has overtaken the beach, whether I’m solo or with a friend, I’m going. Because that’s the time I’ve got.

Although all I want is to be out there for every glassy, windless 2-3 foot day, with no need to wear a watch because I’m not on anyone but Triton’s time, only being able to go when I can go means I enjoy it more when I score and it’s perfect. Going under any circumstances also challenges you to learn how to have fun and surf even when the conditions are less than ideal: The period are five seconds. The waves are clumpy. It’s low tide in a high tide spot. No matter. I’m in the ocean, my phone’s down, and I’m on my board. Life is pretty good.

I’ve never been a very fussy surfer; it’s always fun to me. But now, those days where I arrive and maybe even the forecast was wrong and I’m staring at rippling glass and tide rising, well I feel like I took the moon.