Points of Failure: choose your wave.

In January I surfed for the first time.

Even with having been born and raised on an island, it’s something I kept filed away for “someday.” But as I tallied notes from my journaling during the previous year, I was reminded of one of the most impactful highlights I’ve ever made:

Someday is just a thought.

One morning, bright and early with boards in hand, an instructor led me and two others across the beach to take instructions on the sand. He had us lay face down on our board to mimic what we would be doing in the water. 

Many of the pointers doubled as principles for life; patience, going with the flow, keeping your gaze forward, finding your balance, and being mindful of each other. But as the instructor encouraged us, my mind produced a different form of chatter:

•You’re gonna suck.

•You can’t do this.

•You’re gonna embarrass yourself. 

I recognized that voice—the one that wants to protect me from falling so badly, it would rather I not even get in the water. For years I used to let it run the show, until I learned to acknowledge its existence, thank it for its concern, and disregard it.

After our brief training, It was time to hit the water. 

On my first try, I couldn’t get up…

On try number two, I did but clumsily fell forward…

On my third try, I rode the wave all the way to the end.

For the next two hours, I continued to catch wave after wave. I’d been nervous about falling in front of everyone when in reality, it was one of the first things the instructor had said when someone asked “so how do you get off?”

“Just fall backwards before you reach the shore.”

What I found was that thoughts are similar to waves—we feel them bump against us, we recognize they’re there, but we don’t have to go after every single one. We can let them pass until the right one comes along.

And when we see it coming, that’s the one we want to ride on.