Perhaps you remember,
Standing in the surf.
You watch and wait.
The waves come rushing toward you.
You turn and run as fast as your short legs will carry you.
But each time it catches you.
The water rushes over your bare feet.
The race is exhilarating.
It retreats. You stop and turn around.
You charge the ocean.
Until the waves rush at you.
Again you turn and run from the attacking beast.
It’s a fun day at the beach.
A few summers pass.
You’re older, wiser and stronger.
You venture forth into the deeper waters
The waves are wilder.
But now you refuse to run.
You stand against their attacks.
The ocean is not so big after all.
Then a renegade wave catches you off balance.
It knocks you down.
You swallow the frothy water.
Your eyes burn.
You can hardly breathe.
You fight the pull and stand to your feet
Feeling like you almost drowned.
Trimphant!
Adrenalin races through your body.
This is amazing!
You look out to the sea
You really see it.
It’s big.
It’s magnificent.
It’s epic.
It’s powerful.
And it calls you.
You take steps toward the deep.
“Don’t go too far out!” your mom shouts from the shore.
You are old enough to know it’s over your head.
So you hesitate.
You can’t swim in all of the wildness.
It’s dangerous.
You’ll die.
No one, absolutely no one, is out there.
You’d be a fool to go there
By yourself.
You’d be swallowed up.
And who knows what creatures lurk below.
“Come back in. You’re too far out!”
It’s your mother.
You turn and see her walking toward you.
But you take another step.
“Did you hear me?! Come back in. You’re too far out!”
You retreat.
Every summer you come back.
You venture forth more.
But there’s a limit.
It’s the sand underneath.
As long as you can feel the sand underneath, you’re safe.
Yet still it beckons.
The beauty
The power
The wildness
You listen.
MW 2.20
Your mother calls too.
Along with other voices that warn you.
Cautions are everywhere.
You return to the safety of the shore.
And every summer you go back home.
It’s early June
Under the umbrella, enjoying the breeze.
Your own children are now playing in the surf.
One of them heads toward the water.
“Come back in! You’re too far out!”
It’s your voice. It’s you.
You can never cross the ocean until you have the courage to lose sight of the shore”
Christopher Columbus
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