The ocean is a temperamental lover;
warm and gentle one moment,
unknowable and cold the next.
It is immense and overwhelming,
yet close and intimate;
the salty water familiar as my own internal workings.
I love to ride its waves, especially when
they lift me up beyond what I can manage on my own,
and melding my own body to them, I can ride just like the wind…
But suddenly, it will become a wild, frightening force
that leaves me stunned and breathless,
tumbling and pounded into the earth I sought to leave.
I struggle with no thought to get back up to the surface
and with a pang I remember what is was like to breathe,
my tears indistinguishable from the water that surrounds me.
Gasping, I retreat and stand trembling on the shore,
my body weak and soul scoured
by movements I cannot comprehend.
Do I dare to dive again into the fierce and briny waters
where someday I will likely drown?
Ah, and drown I surely shall, as I have nearly drowned this day.
Author notes
Written April 22nd, 2004
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I have never surfed and after reading this... I don't think it would be my thing at all!
You have done a wonderful job of describing how it feels to surf... the exhilaration and the trepidation. I could almost taste the brine as I read this. Great stuff!
~ Louise
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Loved the play on emotion and ocean. Powerful metaphor, using the tempermental ocean to display your own inner turbulence. Excellent work!
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I remember surfing near El Segundo and biting it on the tiniest waves, getting up and going back to catch another. I could almost taste the water and feel the sand in my mouth - nice work.
Scott
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