Surf: I honestly can’t recall what the surf was like this evening. I suppose that’s what I get for waiting two months to update my little surf journal. I’m sure it was lovely.
This seems like a good time to talk about patience and progress.
I will admit that I’m not always patient. Sometimes I make the 10 minute pasta dish instead of the 50 minute rice dish. Sometimes I take a challenge head on, in such a rush to “get it right” or to see results that I don’t always take the time to really see what it is I am learning to do.
I’ve been fairly patient with surfing, for the most part. I’ve tried to approach surfing from the perspective that this is something FUN I do, not something I need to be the best at. About two years into learning to surf, I got a little impatient. I had a little bit of mild success with longboarding. It wasn’t huge, but it was just enough to make me think “yeah, I got this” and become impatient to move to a shorter board. I struggled quite a bit stepping down. My longboarding skills were too green to smoothly translate to a shorter board. Rather than persistently throw myself at the problem and get frustrated, I put aside the idea of shortboarding to focus on improving my longboarding skills in the hopes that with enough time and practice, I’d be able to take on shortboarding again with more success.
When I spotted my 7’0 on craigslist a year and a half later, I thought it’s wide shape and longboard-like outline might be a little easier to catch waves than the other more traditional shortboards I had tried to ride. Remembering the frustration and difficulty I’d had earlier, I approached this board with patience and low expectations. I was pleasantly surprised to find I did not struggle as much as I had on my previous attempts. I still struggled then, and I still struggle now, but I’ve paced myself. I’ve learned to give credit to all of the skills I’d built up in that year and a half. Instead of focusing on what I “can’t” do right now, I’ve been focusing on how much more I can do than I could before.
When I decided to go back to Mexico, I knew I wanted to take a board. The waves last year were so forgiving and I learned so much through being able to surf every day. I knew this would be a great opportunity to really learn a shorter board away from the Linda Mar crowds. I’d also never traveled with a board before so this trip offered an additional opportunity to learn something new.
While I’ve missed my share of waves on this trip, I have also learned so much. I’ve learned plenty about where to position myself to the peak on a shorter board, how to catch waves, and how to turn. I’ve gained a great deal of confidence on this smaller board that will help keep me motivated as I continue to learn on it. The most important lesson I think I’ve learned is that sometimes it’s okay to step away from a challenge for the time being. It’s not giving up to say “I’ll try again when I am ready” any more than it is progress is relentlessly throw yourself against a challenge hoping it will budge. Determination and patience both have their place and both can lead to progress.
I still have plenty to learn (I feel like I have noooooo style), but I’m looking forward to learning it.
I spent the evening drawing a hermit crab I found sitting by my beach chair at sunset. Drawing is another area where I’ve learned I can set something aside and return to it when I’m ready. So far, so good.
