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| BODYSURFING FREEDOM |
| It was one of those mornings where everything came together. There was too much to do in the Real World, the sky was overcast, and I just didn't have the time. But who knew when the surf would come up again? I didn't want to babysit a surfboard if I ended up running errands insted of getting wet, a distinct possibility. What I happened upon was a clearing sky, surf still pumping, and an unlimited choice of surf breaks. You can bodysurf anything. I was checking beaches along cliffs in northern Malibu, watching little clumps of standup surfers finding their own escapes from crowded point and beach breaks, seeing dolphins leisurely swimming through massive kelp beds, listening to sea birds. Eventually I came across one beach with fairly shapeless waves but absolutely nobody nearby. Watching the sets showed that while there weren't long rides to be had, there were some deep caverns. The handboard allowed a little more time and a better perspective to watch the wave heave out and over. I was all by myself. The water temperature was a surprise. I figured to trunk it, which I usually manage to do once a year, even if the water is so cold my goosebumps give me pit rash. This water was very nice, upper 60's I would think. While the impact zone was a churning morass of sand, once past the whitewater the ocean was a beautiful clear green. I could not only see my fins, I could see and feel bare skin and see my trunks. It was like some semi-Hawaiian dream, which I still get. It was like dreaming (remembering?) being a child again, those trips to the beach before wetsuits and boards, maybe with my Mom reading a book on the beach waiting for me and my friends to tire out or get cold. Then sitting on the sand, asking her about Hawaii in the 1930's when she lived there, about surfing on wooden boards with her brothers. Funny thing about that. When I was that kid I couldn't wait to get a surfboard, go to Hawaii, and get lost in the surfing life. Eventually all that happened, but when I need to unwind, to get uncomplicated, to "unscrew" my life complexities, all it takes is something like bodysurfing and a day like this to work the magic Don't cost much, either. |
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