Riding the Waves
In 2015 our family headed down to Texas for a Christmas Vacation. It wasn’t the sunny bliss that we would have hoped for but we still managed to catch the beach for a day. This vacation comes to mind often because of a picture I took and a corresponding story that my son wrote about the experience. As a father taking the picture I see a son conquering a new experience. His version of the events can be found below.
The wind blew strong, making the water churn in the distant ocean. Waves started to form. Then the waves crashed. I tried to jump over them, but they hit me in the face.
“Ouch!” I yelled over the crash of the waves.
A few hours before this, I was walking the streets of South Padre Island. My family and I went to the shops and big buildings. After walking for some time, we found a surfing store. We walked in the store, and I looked around. There was not a wall in there that did not have a surfboard or boogie board on it! There was all sorts of stuff in there!
“What are we doing for the rest of the day?” I asked my dad.
“Boogie boarding at the beach!” my dad replied. I was so excited. I had never been boogie boarding before! As the excitement settled in, so did the fear. We rented a few boogie boards and went to the beach. My dad handed me a board, but I did not tell him I was terrified. Instead, I stepped into the icy cold ocean water. The wind blew through my hair. I barely listened as my dad told me how to catch a wave.
“Okay, you ready, Carson?” my dad yelled over the wind.
“Yeah!” I yelled back, although I did not hear the instructions due to the loud wind and crash of the waves. I knew what to do because I watched my dad do it.
We walked out slowly. Large waves started to form. The waves crashed. I tried to jump over the wave, but it hit me!
“Ouch!” I yelled.
The sting of the saltwater started to form, and my eyes were blurred from the hard impact.
“Are you okay?” my dad asked me a couple of seconds later.
“I am good, just a little shaken up,” I replied, getting up again.
We kept walking out, and another waved formed. Somehow, I felt good about this wave. I spun around, jumped, and the wave hit the back of my board. I was propelled toward the beach. The wind hit my face. The rushing wave carried me all the way to the shore. When I reached the beach, I got up and walked out again with a little more confidence this time.
I continued to catch more waves. Each wave was easier to catch and more fun to ride. When we left the beach later that afternoon, I knew I had conquered my fear.