The Day I Thought the Ocean Would Take Me
I don’t know if anyone here surfs, but I had an experience years ago that still lives in me.
It was 3 June 2001 in Wollongong Australia.
I paddled out in 12-foot waves — way beyond my level at the time. The ocean was wild, the current relentless, and I was completely out of my depth. For two hours I fought to stay out of the impact zone, terrified I wouldn’t make it back.
I started to feel what drowning might actually be like. It was painful. Real. Terrifying in a way that stripped everything else away. At one point, I called out to some other surfers, and they came. They asked for my name and used it to guide me back toward shore. They told me when to dive under, how to survive the next wall of water. We made it together.
When I got to the beach, I felt nothing but pure ecstasy. I didn’t cry. I didn’t think. I was just alive. And I’ve never forgotten how grateful I was to those strangers who helped me when I couldn’t help myself.
No one really talks about how humbling the ocean can be. Or how it changes the way you see all life — how fragile and vulnerable we all are, not just humans, but every creature fighting for breath.
Anyway… I’m not sure why I’m posting this. Maybe someone out there will understand. Maybe someone’s been through something similar.
It was 3 June 2001 in Wollongong Australia.
I paddled out in 12-foot waves — way beyond my level at the time. The ocean was wild, the current relentless, and I was completely out of my depth. For two hours I fought to stay out of the impact zone, terrified I wouldn’t make it back.
I started to feel what drowning might actually be like. It was painful. Real. Terrifying in a way that stripped everything else away. At one point, I called out to some other surfers, and they came. They asked for my name and used it to guide me back toward shore. They told me when to dive under, how to survive the next wall of water. We made it together.
When I got to the beach, I felt nothing but pure ecstasy. I didn’t cry. I didn’t think. I was just alive. And I’ve never forgotten how grateful I was to those strangers who helped me when I couldn’t help myself.
No one really talks about how humbling the ocean can be. Or how it changes the way you see all life — how fragile and vulnerable we all are, not just humans, but every creature fighting for breath.
Anyway… I’m not sure why I’m posting this. Maybe someone out there will understand. Maybe someone’s been through something similar.
