Article by Mary Bea Sullivan

Yesterday while on the phone with a wise friend, she said, “Sounds like you are riding the waves. You can feel the motion changing, but you just can’t control it.”

It sounded so easy when she said it.  At least I could understand why I had been feeling a bit “seasick” lately.

Even though I have lived within driving distance of the “shore” in New Jersey, the “ocean” in California, or the “beach” in North Carolina and Alabama, I have never tried surfing. Nothing about it appealed to me … Standing, (if you ever get to that part) on a skinny board, tossed about wildly, and wondering if sharks are lurking below … is of absolutely no interest to me.

Why would I want my life to be like that?  Yet I wonder if we aren’t always surfing - feeling the motion changing around us.

I decided to check out surfing tips on the web hoping they would help me ride some of the waves I am on right now.  I went to chiff.com and found some great stuff:

Mark the balance point.  Basically, this sounds like using trial and error to find where you can best balance while lying down on the board.  There was an important note about this step … when you reach balance, take note of where that point is.  Hmmm…

Paddle with one arm at a time.  Apparently this allows for you to maintain a consistent speed so you can catch the wave (I guess as opposed to being pummeled by it).  Going full-speed with both arms is detrimental to maintaining control.

Be calm and stay still when first trying to sit on the board.  Wow!  “The less movement you make, the easier it is to do this (sit on the board).  All the other skills of surfing will improve as you learn to be ‘calm’ while surfing.”  I guess that means making radical, reactionary changes will knock us off our boards.  I’m reminded of Psalm 46:10 … “Be still, and know that I am God.”

When you come up, remember to keep low.  Assume a position of a sumo wrestler.  I have no idea how this might translate to riding life’s waves, but I love the visual.  Even still, it reminds me to:  (a) stay grounded in life, and; (b) when riding the waves of success to remember what is truly important.

Practice this for hours.  So those trips to the zafu cushion to meditate or the yoga mat to practice must be of some benefit in this life wave surfing thing.

OK … I’m not as afraid of surfing as I was before and I actually feel like I know some of this stuff when it comes to riding life’s waves.  I am grateful to chiff.com for the reminder! Surf’s up!

“I do not know what I may appear to the world, but to myself I seem to have been only like a boy playing on the sea-shore, and diverting myself in finding a smoother pebble or prettier shell than ordinary, whilst the great ocean of truth lay all undiscovered before me.”
-Sir Isaac Newton

Mary Bea Sullivan is the author of Dancing Naked Under the Moon - Uncovering the Wisdom Within, a compelling story about her pilgrimage toward wholeness.  She facilitates spiritual retreats and workshops for women’s groups and faith communities.  Mary Bea lives with her husband, Malcolm Marler, and their yellow (white really) lab, Daisy on Smith Lake in Alabama. For more information about Mary Bea Sullivan and her work, please visit www.MaryBeaSullivan.com.

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