This past Wahine Wednesday was one of those days…and we’ve had many, where if it were not for the commitment to surf EVERY Wednesday for a year, we would not have gotten in the water.

This past Wednesday was winter!!  Where just a day before had been summer.  Tuesday was a sunny, warm, cloudless, wind free day.  The waves in the river were waist to shoulder high…lefts and rights and glassy.  And the crowd!  8-10 river locals who shared waves easily.  Where conversation and laughter came naturally.  It was a fun surf day where you leave with a smile hoping the next day will be a carbon copy.

Well, that was not the case.  Wednesday was cloudy…not a ray of sunlight to be seen.  The wind was up early.  Not just breezy but stormy.  So much so that the walk to the beach with my board made me feel as if at any moment the wind could pick me up and catapult me backward.  There were no waves in the river so we got in at Bolsa.  The waves were walled and disorganized and the current was fierce.  It was not a day where you look at the conditions and say “I can’t wait to get in.”

If not for the dedication to Wahine Wednesdays, we all would have politely declined, passed out hugs, and left the beach.  The thing that struck me as I was reflecting on our surf session later in the day is that when the four of us showed up that morning, no one even questioned whether or not we were going to surf.  No one said “Are we going?” or “Why are we bothering?”  No one complained. And no one left the beach.  It was extremely heart warming to me to recognize that our surf family honors our commitment to WW just as much as Tiare and I.  It made me think of a baseball or basketball team, it is the individual commitment to a group effort that makes WW work.  That makes it special.  We are bonded by this commitment.

That day was a challenging day in the water.  We had to be discerning and choose the right wave or, as we each found out at least once, if we took off on the wrong wave, we would go over the falls and get pummeled.  It was a humbling and intimidating day where the wind was so fierce the spray from mere paddling was blinding.  Where we tasted that bit of fear that had been dormant during the lazy waves of summer.  Where we learned that sometimes, the lesson is in learning to fall well.

Days like these are never “fun” but they always make me a better surfer.

The dedication to the Wahine Wednesday goal is what brings us together.  And it is ours and our surf family’s commitment to each other that keeps it going.  It is not just about catching waves on Wednesdays.  It is about truly being committed to something.  It is about the things we can learn about ourselves and each other and about mother nature.  It is about this bond of friendship that we share that gets deepened each time we are in the water together…especially on days like today.

It is simple to be committed to something when it’s easy.  When it is pleasurable.  When you know you can’t lose.  When you are traveling down the hill.  When the shoulder high waves are glassy and the sun is beaming on your face.

The true challenge is to be committed to something when it is hard. When you DON’T want to do it.  When you know it is going to be uncomfortable and you may get hurt.  This is when commitment brings growth.  When you realize you are committed to something larger than yourself and through this commitment you grow.  You become better.  And your relationships deepen as you share the commitment toward a common goal.

Even though Wahine Wednesdays doesn’t require a huge commitment like competing in an IronMan or Hiking Mt. Everest, it requires dedication none the less.  Just as when we face the swell, choose a wave to take, paddle to get into position and commit to making the drop, even if it is an ominous wall of water, we commit.

In this way we are committed to Wahine Wednesdays and to each other.  We honor this pledge to surf EVERY Wednesday for a year and we open ourselves to learning life’s lessons…no matter how small.

Salty Kisses,

Karen