Imagine yourself in a kayak, the waves are rushing underneath you, paddling endlessly when suddenly, a cold shock of the Pacific hits. You are upside down, the depths of the ocean tugging you downward and a massive yellow kayak stuck above your head. You swim out, gasp for air, and immediately get to work. Grasping the keel, you pull the kayak upright before hoisting yourself out of the frigid water and back into your boat. It all happens within minutes, and while it sounds terrifying, it truly is amazing. Growing up, I was the little girl horrified of all things outdoors. I screamed whenever my feet touched the ocean, a ladybug landed on my skin, or I had to help in my parents’ garden among slugs and worms. The summer before my freshman year, my parents suggested I take part in a trip to the Channel Islands. The first few days were spent kayaking, something vaguely familiar. When our trip leader asked for a volunteer to kayak with another teacher, I raised my hand. Just beyond shore, within the jetty, she looked at me and asked, “Are you ready?” My heart was pounding, but I could not turn back. Suddenly, we flipped. Learning to right an overturned kayak while remaining calm was daunting, but having one clear goal while submerged in the ocean was strangely exhilarating. That first plunge into the Pacific didn’t just teach me how to climb back into a kayak. It taught me that the greatest discoveries often begin when we are willing to dive into the unknown.
Tag: ocean
More Waves
I probably had one of my rawest encounters with the ocean on the Santa Cruz trip. On Thursday the group hiked to Smugglers cove (Liam and I ran), this large round bay faces south, unlike Scorpion Ranch which faces northeast where we spend most of the trip. What’s important is not the bay itself but that hundreds of miles south of the bay a hurricane was(still is) active off of Baja. Hurricanes and storms such as this one generate 90% of swells worldwide, and this storm is no exception. For days large lumps of water have traveled hundreds of miles along the coast bringing warm water and very good waves to Mexico and California. The swell and bay direction created a very interesting experience in the water. Large closeout walls slammed into shores in sets of 4 to 5 waves with faces that peaked (to my best guess) at 7 or 8 feet. Liam, Zimo, and I got the opportunity to swim out into these waves ducking and swimming under them and even catching the smaller ones with our bodies, or the boogie board in Liam’s case. This experience is easily one of the coolest I’ve had in the water because of the lack of wind and large swell, the waves were perfectly clean giants and they were absolutely gorgeous. Each set was a new masterpiece of nature and each wave defined the ocean’s beauty. I love waves.
Seaside
by the sea she sits
watching the waves crash over and over again
her blank stare collided with the violent ocean movements
her fragile body sank into the warmed sand as the water slinked up the beach
desperately trying to touch her
next to her a book that reads Gone With The Wind laid on a small quilt
the checkered baby pink and faded lime green quilt also held an old fashioned film camera and a what seemed to be a collection of shells
at that moment I knew nothing about her accept she may possibly be a romantic due to the book
she interested me because she looked so unbelievably in place
she seemed to simply exist, without disrupting any of the everyday inhabitants, very quietly and naturally
above her seagulls circled in a draft
their wings sat almost as still as she did
she wore a white silk dress and a large scarf that wrapped around her whole upper body
then I see her hand lift and point out into the wide plane of water
she soon retracted her hand, probably remembering that there was no one to show what she had spotted
the water stood still and glassy all the way out to the horizon
I followed in the general direction her finger pointed and saw a large explosion of water, soon after there was another much smaller spout
my best guess is a humpback whale and her calf because it was around the time for their migration
soon after seeing the whale I picked up my things and walked down the beach in the opposite direction of the mysterious woman
hopefully you enjoyed a short glimpse into my outside perspective on an interesting stranger
From the Ocean Looking Up
in those rich minutes the light was heavy warm gold
viscous with the weight of the looming sky
her wet skin reflected the light as if it were oil
floating in the sodium and the waves
rocking back and forth
I fought the incessant ocean
that colossal blue
as it pulled the warmth from my heavy limbs
I was suspended 4 inches from the glassy surface
blowing fat bubbles that distorted your reflection
My Turtle Koa
For Christmas my grandma gave me a turtle. Her name is Koa, and she came with a little bead bracelet and a card to track her movements in the wide ocean. I scanned her code, and my phone displayed a map of where she was released.
Her journey began on the coast of Florida as her rescuers released her into the wild. I could see she had already swam miles up the coast of the United States. She had passed Georgia territory and was nearing North Carolina.
Her little fins took her across half of the country, and halfway back. When I had previously thought about sea creatures, I had always imagined they’d stay in one area that they called home. My experience with Koa, however, has showed me that she is a true explorer of the ocean with no limits or boundaries.
I am grateful to have a connection to a living part of the ocean that I can check in on each day.
A Cold Ocean’s Call
it was bitter and cold
in the great green pacific.
and the warmth crawled out from my bones
as the words in my head slowed their swirling.
instead of going with them,
there I would sit
socks in the sand
I kept high and dry
Always away from that wet;
I hadn’t yet felt it’s unavoidable pull
that siren’s song.
I hadn’t let the cold seep in,
I hadn’t plunged into the ocean,
But I would.
The ocean begs for our attention
it begs for big words
and soft sounds
a deft touch
and a guiding glance
to make sure
that we
who sit in stony silence
will be kept in time
by the rising and falling of
the great green pacific
Dawn patrol
This week I went surfing at 5 am for the very first time. I got up at 4.30 am and got ready. I got dressed, grabbed the wetsuit, grabbed my bag and waited for the van to pick me up. It was freezing outside but I was so incredibly excited. I always wanted to go to the beach before the sunrise and swim and surf while watching the sun rise. As soon as we arrived at the beach we put our wetsuits on, grabbed our boards and headed to the beach.
I was barefoot and we had to walk a little distance to the beach on concrete and my feet were completely frozen and in pain from walking on the hard and sharp concrete. I finally stepped on sand and immediately ran towards the water. I stayed in the more shallow spot first to just practice a bit before my teacher called me over to try some bigger waves.
After many failed attempts I finally managed to stand up for just a second before I fell but it was still amazing. The sunrise was absolutely beautiful and there were many seals just swimming around us. One of them popped its head up right next to me and looked at me curiously before it dove back down.
It was my first time being at the beach before sunrise and it was a long dream of mine that I was finally able to fulfill.
Determined
Last week was my first trip to the beach since coming out of quarantine. I had been looking forward to it the whole week and then it was finally time to leave. We packed our surfboards and wetsuits and made our way to the beach.
It was a hot day, the sun was shining and the mood was good. We sang songs in the car all the way to the beach and when we arrived we immediately grabbed our stuff and ran down to the beach. Feeling the sand between my feet and the sun on my shoulders felt so good. I hadn’t been to the beach in 6 months and it felt so good to be back. My friend and I looked at each other and just started running towards the water like two little kids. The water was cold but also warm, just perfect. We swam for a few minutes before we decided it was time to get on the surfboards and attempt to surf.
Well, we definitely miscalculated how big some of the waves were and just got slammed to the ocean floor. It was a struggle getting out in the water again as the waves just came crushing in, taking you and your board with them. When we finally made it out we waited for a wave that was small enough for us, as we have never really surfed in our lives. We kept trying and trying and every yet so tiny success was enough to keep us motivated.
We ended up being in the water for 3 hours trying to stand up on our board. At one point we were so exhausted we didn’t even have the strength to push ourselves up anymore. The sun started setting, creating a beautiful bright orange color that reflected from the ocean. It was time to go, and our teachers called us back in to pack our stuff and head back to the van.
I will go back to the beach again tomorrow and I will not give up until I stand on the board surfing down the line, even of it will take me weeks to accomplish it.
Picture credit to author
Stars on the Open Ocean
the men in that big wooden boat heaved against the ocean
that endless blue
through the night they rowed
moving galaxies out of the way with each successive stroke
in the middle of the boat seated parallel to the back of the outrigger
one man focussed on his brown arm and the way it seemed to work by its own volition
his bicep roared in its quiet fight against the mighty open
In the back of the boat one man fell so deep within himself that he lost track of the stars
but the boat knew the way
and right here sat a boy who simply rowed
in time
open like the ocean
Concentric Circles
Like two concentric circles
I feel the dawns and risings
Falling into time
Orbiting and cycling like rings of some grand design
Winds blow me where the water runs in time
To keep my eyes above the ribbons parched and frozen
Like an ocean master’s finger hold
Her careless calloused caress
It screams of devotion
Of a calm
Of a sailor’s test
Her arms are ragged and fearless
Her toes are soaked and furled
She holds it all together
Like god holds our world
She chews upon ideas
Like a mouthful of wonder
Like cheeks full of zeal
And I am left on the deck like a blubberless seal
Wondering where along my path will I learn such sacred songs
I feel like I can hear them
Like leaves
The lessons
thrust to the ground from their canopy homes
and dragged
Like billions of fingernails on a world sized chalkboard
You must be logged in to post a comment.