hollow

I saw on the station’s website that you were presenting at a climate conference in the city that was an hour’s drive away from me. I entertained the idea of going just to see you but then thought it quite silly to consider. However, the idea of seeing you again stirred many uplifting emotions within me.

All it would take was just a thought of you and my entire being was lifted from the ground. It was this very feeling that allowed me to further explore what love meant to me. If I could feel such an energetic high from a simple thought then why did it have to be more? Why did I have to crave it in forms more graceful than that of etheric thought? Why did I have to work so hard mentally to try and attract it into my life only to convince myself that it could never be? Why could I not just be happy with the way things were?

I came out of the water from a really good practice and as I made my way to my van I noticed someone leaning up against the side door with their hands in their pockets. As I approached closer they pushed themselves from the side of the van and turned to face my direction. Their hand mindfully left their pocket and began rubbing the back of their neck. I made my way closer still and my heart nearly jumped out of my chest when I realized it was you! I stopped just a few feet in front of you, with my board under my arm and my other hand held out over my eyes, blocking the sun from my face, subtly trembling from the powerful encounter. Excited but puzzled I asked:

‘Hi! What brings you here?’ I could feel my face blush and my smile uncontrollably stretch from ear to ear.

‘Hi. I, uh, asked the surf school where I’d be able to find you and they told me here. How are you?’

I couldn’t believe this was happening, not only was I standing a few feet away from you but you were actually asking me about myself!

‘Yeah, I’m good, thanks’ I couldn’t think of anything else to say, I just giggled nervously ‘Ummmm, so, what…’

‘Do you have time? Can we go somewhere to talk?’ … Did I have time?… Was this actually happening?!

‘Ummmm, yes… and yes! Just let me put my board away and we can go…’

Reality came swirling back to me and I came to, putting my keys in the ignition and looking around. With a hefty sigh I began pulling out of the car park and chuckled at how powerful my imagination was. I threw on my sunglasses and turned up my music, I sang as heartfelt as I could, I sang until the reality of the situation didn’t feel so hollow anymore. I pulled in to the car park of the local grocery store and something caught my eye as I walked past the automatic doors and the community notice board. The local storm chasers group was holding a draw for two tickets to the upcoming Climate Conference. How could I not enter?

omnipresent

I settled into my new place nicely, it was cute, it was cozy, it was me. It was situated in a wonderful setting surrounded by trees with a little creek running through the backyard. It was the perfect environment to get to know myself a little better. The surf school was great to me, everyone was friendly and welcoming and although I could bide most of my time surfing or working I still found enough time to think about you.

I kept thinking about our encounter, remembering you noticing me, our hug, my going away gift. It all felt so surreal and unbelievable, it brought a luminous smile to my face every time I thought about it. As much as it felt like something magical had occurred I tried to be very clear in my mind that it was only a moment in time and I was very fortunate to have received something so powerful from the universe. It had boundaries that I convinced myself I could not cross, it was definitive rather than infinite and it was in the past. I found though, that I kept trying to entice myself to consider the possibility that it meant something more but the rational side of my mind would put a hand out before me to try and stop me from going any further.

I continually had to remind myself that your heart belonged to someone else. I felt as though I’d come to terms with that but random thoughts of you would float into my head making me question just how sincere that acceptance really was. I’d walk alongside the tide on the beach and watch the whitewash effervesce and glitter in the sun, making the sand look like tiny sparkling diamonds, reminding me of your beauty, your eyes and your smile. I’d go traveling and exploring somewhere and a feeling of confidence and connectedness would stir within me making me think of you, wishing you could see me.

There were times when it felt like you actually could see me, as though you were there, omnipresent with affection.

Where ever I went it seems I would fantasize running into you, like fate had something in store for us, like I would be shopping at the fruit and veg store and just as I’ve gone to grab the last apple my hand would brush up against someone else’s reaching for the same thing, when I’d look up to apologize I’d find you standing beside me. Or that I’d be coming out of the water with my board under my arm and I’d find you standing on the sand with a bouquet of flowers, waiting for me to tell me you felt the same as me. I relished this feeling when it happened but quickly had to pull my head out of the clouds and the whole process of learning to accept reality at face value would reinforce itself as a pattern in my mind.

taking the lead

It was the morning of my departure and I said goodbye to my family. They stood in the driveway waving goodbye to me until I could no longer see them. It was one of the more difficult moments in my life but I knew I wasn’t going to be that far away from them. I knew I’d see them again soon and I knew the next time I did I’d be different.

There was an uplifting freedom when driving through the winding, coastal terrain. It felt like time and space ceased to exist and as though I was interconnected to all that surrounded me. Every moment was a reflection of the deep satisfaction and contentedness I felt with my life. I even sensed the air differently as I allowed it to rush through my fingers while I held my hand out the window. I looked through my rearview mirror as I forged ahead.

The road was curvy and undulating with the sky as expansive as the underlying the sea. I’d drive around a bend after ascending an incline and the landscape opened up to me like a tale from a magical book. Rocky escarpments climbing their way up to beautiful green leafy trees on one side then tumbling down into glowing whitewash reflecting off turquoise waters on the other. At times I’d descend into it’s allure, allowing myself to be enveloped by it’s infinite beauty and other times I imagined taking flight like an angel without wings, allowing my body to guide me above the spectacular landscape with my arms outstretched like the wings of a plane as though I were in a lucid dream.

I pulled over at one point to take a break and have a quick surf. The beauty of this everlasting coastline is that you could find little pockets of surf everywhere. It felt refreshing to be in the water, like it was the one place I could return to when everything else around me swirled in motion. I took a moment to dry off and sit in the sand, I closed my eyes and listened to the tide ebb and flow. I inhaled the saltwater air and felt the ocean breeze against my face.

I heard a noise off in the distance and I looked to my left to see a figure running towards me, shadowed by the backdrop of the sun. As the figure approached I heard a stomping that became louder and louder. The form began to take shape. I saw that it was someone riding a horse in the shallow tide. As they approached closer my vision of the person riding the horse became clearer and overwhelmingly familiar, she was traveling at tremendous speed with her brown hair flying in the wind. The person riding the horse was me. My perception shifted and I could see myself riding the horse bare back, holding onto my mare’s mane, intertwining gracefully with the rhythm of her speed. I kept looking behind me with great excitement and a huge smile on my face like I was racing someone and taking the lead. My perception shifted again and i was back on the beach watching the rider come closer and closer then swiftly pass me, sending a warm breeze to fly past me. I felt my head tilt back from the rush of air and as I came back I gently opened my eyes and looked to each side. I was the only person on the beach.

synchronicity

‘These messages come from a level of mind that knows life as a whole, and ultimately we would have to say that we are really communicating with ourselves – the whole is talking to its parts. Synchronicity steps outside the brain and works from a larger perspective‘  – Deepak Chopra, How to Know God

I never really knew of or questioned the significance of synchronicity in a material existence. I certainly experienced at least one synchronistic event prior to the moment I received my treasured going away gift but I was too young and unaware to fully appreciate the divine will that had stepped in and said ‘PAY ATTENTION!… NOW!’ I got the message and made the necessary changes but this time was different and definitely more complicated. But I understood, perhaps on a subconscious level, that something greater was at work. A lifetime of religious conditioning so ubiquitous, yet so secular, had lead me to believe that ‘something greater’ meant something external to me; something that wielded more power than I, as a human being.

I’ll admit that I hoped, dreamed, fantasized and to certain extent I even tried to plan chance but it wasn’t until I let go of all of that that the building blocks of reality started to fall into place. I didn’t ask, I didn’t pray, I didn’t expect – I just was, and it felt like my most deepest desires were starting to unfold and expand gracefully into an ethereal wave of existence. It was my first encounter of manifestation so inexplicable and subconscious that it propelled me into an introspective journey so profound that every synchronicity that has occurred in my life since then has made me wonder if life, and love, is really by chance at all?

Was it by chance that I held you in my arms? Was everything else after, by chance? Was it by chance that as you were starting a new life with someone that someone synchronistically came into mine?

I tried to plan chance, I tried to place what I could so meticulously so that when events began to unfold the surrounding environment would be ready for what I knew to be true in my heart. I planned to see you, to reassure you I was there, to look the way I did, to hold you. To tell you about him just as I had told him about you. What I didn’t plan on was the moon.

just a coincidence

I didn’t tell anyone about our encounter, it was far too sacred to speak of the subtle intimacy that unfolded before my very eyes. The whole experience brought me to a far different understanding of reality and this life then I had ever bore witness to. I wanted to shout it from the rooftops, but I didn’t know how. What I felt pulsing through my veins was far too indescribable to try and rationalize through explanation. Not only could I not describe it but even if I was able to, no one would believe me. In their eyes I was so crazy about you that they’d just as soon believe or be concerned that I was becoming delusional rather than entertain the idea that something extraordinary had occurred.

Then again, maybe I didn’t even believe myself.

Whatever the case, I felt like I had to protect it and keep it in my heart where it would be safe from any scrutiny.

I returned to the pub to rejoin my friends and carried on into the early morning hours, watching the sunrise near a bonfire on the beach. It was going to be a big week for me but I had only 4 days left to enjoy the sunrises at this corner of the world. I’d lived in a few places throughout my life and moving was not necessarily anything new to me but to be moving by myself – away from all of my friends, all of my family, from everything that I knew – was a completely different process, I wanted to cherish every moment I had left.

I was filled with such anticipation but I was scared, I was excited about the new but nervous to let go of the old. The one thing that I learned about moving is that you get to reinvent yourself, you get to start all over again, almost akin to a New Year’s resolution. You have the chance to hit a metaphorical ‘reset’ button and do things differently except in a situation like this you don’t necessarily have the external comforts of your conditioning to fall back on. You strip yourself of all that is comfortable and familiar and what you’re left with is skin and bones, you get to see what you’re really made of. A challenge both so exciting and confronting that I’d find I’d sporadically question myself and wonder just what the hell I was really doing. Was I running away from something? Was I searching for something? Would I ever find it? I was quick to remember all the beautiful and positive things I had learned of myself and others throughout the process and knew that the fire raging in the pit of my stomach would never lead me astray. I didn’t need to question anything, the answer would provide itself.

After a couple of nights of catching up here and going for drinks there the night before my departure arrived. A group of us got together at the local pizza joint to have one last send off. I was moved at how other people felt I touched their lives, I didn’t fancy myself too big of a deal but to be appreciated in so many ways by so many different people helped me recognize my own value. A very dear friend of mine made an appearance, he was almost like my own personal coach giving me tips and feedback when we’d run into each other at the beach. He was one of the first people I spoke to about signing up with a sponsor. He was my friend and a mentor and I admired him very much.

While we were all sitting there chatting and laughing, reminiscing and anticipating he stood up to take all of our attention. He held something in his hand that was wrapped and about the size of a large photo. A peculiar suspicion arose within me

‘What could that be? Is it a photo? Of my victory? Of us? Of what?‘.

He began telling a story of how busy he’d been for the past week, how he took a train up the coast to judge a competition last week and had to rush back down the coast for a family reunion. He told us of how when he was on the way back he was sitting next to this guy on the train who was receiving a bit of attention. People were coming up to him and saying hi, telling him that they loved what he was doing and some even wanted to take a photo with him.

I was so confused at this point, I had no idea where he was going with this story but the peculiarity of it all gave me butterflies in my stomach.

He said he waited for a break in interruption and leaned  over to the guy and said ‘you’re quite the popular one aren’t ya?‘. His new friend said ‘Yeah, they must be mistaking me for somebody else‘. He said he continued to prod and asked ‘No, really, are you a musician or something?‘ to which he laughingly replied ‘No, nothing that glamorous. I’m just a meteorologist‘.

My jaw dropped at this point and incoherent thoughts were racing through my head. I could feel my heart beat faster, my face flush and my eyes begin to tear.

He said he pieced it all together and realized that he was sitting next to the Alfeines Tesla, the one that I was always telling him about and how he should tune in to watch your forecasts and how great you were and how you were this and how you were that. He said that he laughed at the serendipity of it all and felt quite fortunate to have such an opportunity fall into his lap. He said he told you about me and how I was always telling him about you. He said he told you about what I was doing – how I’d just won a major competition and was moving to train at a surf school down the coast. He said you spoke of how you were on your way to the jellyfish festival. He told you that I’d be there.

My thoughts began to slow and spiral to a narrow focus as precise as a pinpoint.

Did he know that was me then? Those incidents weren’t really just a coincidence, they were intended, but how could that be? Maybe the hug wasn’t intended but the other subtleties, they came from somewhere that I had no knowledge of up until this very moment.

I returned my focus to my friend who was now handing me what he held in his hands and told me that he asked you to do something special for him, for me, to wish me well. As I tore open the wrapping a framed photo of you two appeared with an empty matchbook that read ‘All the best, Alfeines T‘. The matchbook was all he had to write on and he had the photo printed earlier that day. I instantly turned into a puddle of mush. He was such a positive influence in my life and to have him express his appreciation for me, particularly before a group of people, took the words right out of my mouth. I cried and hugged him and held the frame close to my heart for the rest of the night.

I was lucky to have so much happening over the next week, it distracted me enough from trying to figure out what had happened and what it meant, but I knew it was going to hit me. It was going to blanket me like a dense fog. I was going to have plenty of time to analyze it and contemplate it after I settled in. Plenty of time.

two bodies

You grabbed your seat after your captivating weather report and the mayor returned to introduce the principal next. The principal said a few words about the students and the school and introduced the parade. People scattered to take their place in the parade or along the route. Henrietta Harvey got up next to warm the crowd with one of her rustic banjo melodies and like an explosion of confetti everyone was off in every which direction to enjoy the festival. I stood there for a few moments as people milled about in front of and behind me, seeing if I could catch one last glimpse of you and just when I thought I caught you I felt someone grab my elbow and rush me off in the opposite direction. It was time to go.

I accepted it as the end of a beautiful and very surprising moment. It didn’t have to be anything more, it certainly wasn’t anything less and I felt content within myself to walk away from it and experience the gratitude that shimmered through my body like a gentle breeze. I counted myself as wise for recognising the beauty of life and proud for not trying to make it more than it was, I felt like I matured in that moment and I was pretty damn excited to move ahead in life with a stronger sense of self. As I moved along with my friends I didn’t feel like I was turning my back on something but more like I was moving towards something, I didn’t quite know what that was but knew that it was symbolic of the journey I was about to embark on.

We floated around the festival like butterflies dancing playfully, connecting with others and spreading joy. We watched the tide go out and we watched the tide come in and as the sun began to fade my umbrella began to shine! At dusk we began our wander around to all the local pubs, dropping in to say hi to everyone at one then moving on to the next to do the same thing all over again. My jellyfish umbrella was a hit and people were asking me how to make one so they could create their own for next year!

Later in the night I experienced such an overwhelming sensation of happiness that I needed to take a moment to absorb it all and give it the due attention it deserved. I snuck out the back, folded my umbrella and walked over to the edge of a curb, I walked far enough away that no one could see me but was still close enough to hear the echoes of voices and laughter as they grew louder with each pint. I sat down under a lamp post and embraced the cool change that came through, I looked up to the sky but couldn’t see the stars because of the cloud coverage. I closed my eyes, took a deep breath in and felt the breeze on my face, I remembered the day and our moment and smiled at how crazy and wonderful life really was.

As I reminisced I felt a raindrop on my cheek, then on my forehead, then on my other cheek, then on the side of my nose beside the crease of my eye. I opened my eyes, stuck my hand out and looked down to see raindrops hitting my palm. I opened my umbrella and looked back up to the sky with a huge smile and as more rain came down I looked to the light of the lamp post. I discovered that if I looked up at the rain at a certain angle against the light, it looked like thousands of tiny, little shooting stars coming straight down at me. I started laughing and grabbed the pole of the lamp post to twirl myself around it. I let go and twirled around freely like a whirling dervish, umbrella hanging from the hand of my extended arm. I was about to make one more revolution when I felt the ground drop out from underneath the heel of my right foot. I lost my balance on the curb and could feel my whole body tipping over in slow motion.

As I began falling to the ground I felt a pair of arms grab me around my back to catch me and my umbrella fell out of my hand. I stabilized my footing, noticed my hands holding onto someone’s arms and when I looked up to see my rescuer, our eyes met. We looked at each other and smiled and without even thinking about it I gave you a gigantic hug. It felt so right, it felt so nurturing, it felt like home. As we pulled apart a voice called your name…

‘Alfie?’

You looked in the direction of the voice and then back at me. You picked up my umbrella from the ground and handed it to me then jogged off into the shadows. I had no idea what was happening with my reality, I didn’t want to question it, I didn’t even have the capacity to, I was gobsmacked by the magic that was brewing in my heart and I was too shocked to even blink. I reached a state of hyper-awareness and had never been more present in my life then when I held you. I knew instantly that that moment was life and love in all it’s glory and that the beauty of that exact moment is what makes this life worth living. It was love in it’s simplest and purest form, just two bodies connecting to stir the soul and ignite the spirit. I was happy to walk away from that moment knowing that life would be filled with all sorts of wondrous excitement, I didn’t even try to speculate if it affected you in the same way as it affected me.

brilliance

Seeing you felt different this time, I wasn’t so much focused on you as I was on me. There was a radiant energy alive in the situation that shone a light on the change that was occuring within me. It felt good and it didn’t feel laced with insecurity, self-doubt or barriers. I was living life openly and receptively and the universe was responding.

Everyone cheered as the mayor made his way to microphone. I cheered my umbrella proudly overhead and clipped some of the flailing legs to the side just so I could see what was happening… and to have a better look at you. The mayor stood before the microphone and said a few words about the year gone past and the year ahead – all the nice, diplomatic things leaders say when trying to reassure you of why you voted for them.

I tried to devote my attention to his words but I couldn’t help but be distracted by you. I kept looking over to you, trying to be coy, trying to refrain from looking too often because I wanted to give the impression that I was listening, that I was concerned, that I was present. However I noticed something slightly unusual when looking at you a couple of times – you were looking straight back at me, atleast that’s what it felt like. ‘It must be the umbrella’ I rationalised to myself.

With the mayor’s voice carrying on in the background like a lecture falling on disinterested ears I looked at you once more and this time you smiled at me! Atleast, that’s what it felt like. I actually looked behind me to see if there was someone else you could be directing your brilliance to. ‘Surely it had to be someone else’ – I told myself as a strategy to help keep myself under control but also as a reality check. Instantly I questioned whether it was all in my head. For all the thoughts I had of you and fantasized about you I had to tread very carefully and critically question my mind and it’s ability to interpret the situation clearly. I didn’t want to believe my mind was playing tricks on me.

I had no room or time for negativity in my mind at the time, I allowed whatever happened to be what it was and was grateful for it happening. I smiled to myself and turned my attention back to the mayor who had just finished introducing you up to the microphone.

The crowd cheered gleefully for you and no one could be happier to see you then me.

You looked so good. I hate to use such a broad term as a description but that’s what you looked like, that’s what you felt like to me. You were so raw and natural, exuding an air of confidence in the way you were not concerned about what other people thought of you yet at the same time reflecting a quiet sensitivity when allowing yourself to be open to vulnerability. I’ve always found you most beautiful when you’ve stripped back the layers and cut through the illusion of skin deep. I hope you always stay that way.

You weren’t far off from your standard attire, the only difference this time was that you were wearing jeans instead of slacks. (A treat that further fuelled my desire.) You were sporting a fitted, dark blue, button-up shirt patterned with small squares outlined by white threading, sleeves rolled up to the elbows, converse sneakers and your signature dark-rimmed glasses. You literally made my knees weak.

‘Thanks everyone for being here today. This is my first festival and I was honoured when asked by Mayor Phillips to present the weather for the weekend!’

Everyone cheered a hearty round of applause. ‘So without further adieu here’s what we’ve got in store: ….’

You were very gracious to engage the crowd and made eye contact with as many people as you could, I didn’t particularly count myself as special when it felt like you made eye contact with me, I just felt like I was a small fish in a medium sized pond. What did I care? I was just happy to see you!

At one point you made eye contact with me while saying ‘tonight looks like we’ll see some light rain’ and cleverly I stuck my hand out from underneath my umbrella and shrugged my shoulders as if to acceptingly suggest ‘what to do?’. You smiled and made the same action back to me and to the crowd! I definitely didn’t imagine that! What was happening here? Of all the situations and encounters I’d imagined in my head, it felt like my wishes were finally starting to come true!

I felt so happy and my heart was racing but I could feel a familiar reasoning coming on. ‘Don’t read too much into it. It’s nice but don’t get too wrapped up in what it might mean. Just be happy for it and leave it.’ Which I was doing for the most part, but to be there in a moment like that with you where everything felt like it was where it should be, I couldn’t help but be overjoyed and open my heart up to more love for you!

There was, however, another side of me that was cautious to remember that someone else held your heart and I had to remind myself that I was okay with that. It was what it was and I still carry that memory with me everywhere.

jellyfish festival

I was elated with my win, I was so high that my feet barely touched the ground. I’d been home nearly a week and my smile was just as big and bright as when I stood on the podium to accept my victory and hug my competitors. This called for a massive celebration and what better place to celebrate than the annual Jellyfish Festival!

The jellyfish festival was very aptly named. For one weekend of the year the town exploded in colourful decoration to pay homage to the nomadic jellyfish. Jellyfish lanterns hung from the trees, jellyfish kites were flown around in sensational fashion and even children marched in a jellyfish parade!

My contribution to participation was wandering around under a jellyfish umbrella I’d created. The canopy was the body with bits of long plastic material fitted out with LED lights to create legs. It looked pretty sensational by day but I was most excited about it’s visual display by night.

There were so many festivities lined up for the weekend – there was a paella cook-off, food stalls, sand sculptures, graffiti installations, live music. It was the perfect send off for a girl about to take on the world!

Everything was going to kick off near the beach. The mayor was going to say a few words to welcome everyone and begin the parade. Everyone in town assembled to view the opening ceremony, it was such a wonderful way to connect before all of the action commenced! We all huddled before the temporary stage, buzzing with anticipation. A microphone and a few chairs stood bare. There was some bustling and movement. Everyone started to cheer as people began to make their way on stage. There was the principal from the high school, Henrietta Harvey – the local Bluegrass musician and just when I thought my luck was spent, the universe tossed me a gentle curve ball, this time, and I saw you walk up to the stage next. I was beaming.

exhale

The weeks leading up to the next competition were filled with joyous buzz, laughter and a magnetism that revolved around my entire being. I knew I was changing. I lived life differently, I loved differently and I was open to experience.

I began to recognise my past as my foundation and as a stepping stone to move forward. I understood more that change was there if I wanted it and that I had to grab it when it presented itself lest it move on to the next person who was prepared to accept it. To a lesser degree I was beginning to understand that I could create it and that it might just not be something external that I was fortunate enough to be presented with. I knew I was in for a lesson in life and I was ecstatic about it.

I continued practising at full steam ahead. I lived in the flow of the moment and loved every second. I thought of you still, although perhaps not as frequently as I used to. I was okay with that. You still held a very fond spot in my heart and I was sincerely happy for your happiness.

As the competition approached everyone I knew was getting excited for me. It’s hard to describe the kind of love you feel when you’re just feeling it, when you’re just experiencing. And maybe it’s hard to describe because that’s the way it was meant to be experienced – without any boundaries or definitions or discernment. Whatever it was it was a very humbling experience to witness so much support and encouragement.

On the day of the competition I was nervous. I drove down a few days before to connect with the water. I had friends and family coming from all over the place, people were catching trains or driving hours away from where they lived. I felt like I was becoming more of ‘that’ person that I wanted to be for you but my awareness was shifting and I realised more and more that I wanted to become who I was for me. Though I still attributed that learning process to you and the gratitude that beamed within gave me the confidence to know that I could do it, I could succeed and my life could catapult.

I swam out to the ocean on my board before everything got underway. I sat on my board and looked out to where the sky met the ocean. I closed my eyes and felt the water brush up and down against my knees, I felt the temperature change against my skin as  the water ebbed and flowed off of my board. I heard a noise off in the distance and opened my eyes to see a spray of water on the horizon. I saw an orca breaching and landing into the water on it’s back. I looked back to the beach in astonishment, it appeared that nobody else saw it!

I kept the encounter to myself and allowed the universe to deliver me exactly what I wanted. I won the competition and I was offered sponsorship with a surf school further down the coast. I was moving and leaving everything I knew behind. It would all happen faster than I could exhale with a breath of excitement.

something divine

The first big day had arrived. I was  surprisingly relaxed. I felt really good about the day ahead of me and did not have one nervous bone in my body. I was confident but not arrogant.

The sun was shining and the water held glass like reflection with waves peeling like shimmering diamonds. I stood where the tide barely touched my toes and as I looked out to the sun to count the sets coming in I took a deep breath and sensed the ocean’s playfulness, she was enticing me to come dance with her. She reassured me that it was going to be a good day.

I knew there were a few people I had to keep my eye on but I also knew that if I went into this with an open mind and heart then the ocean and universe would not lead me astray. I took priority in the majority of heats but missed out on a couple of the better waves. I manoeuvred the ones I caught with ease, starting off with deep bottom turns and re-entries with lots of spray to catch the judges attention. I caught a few lips and rode a few crests but there was another girl who nailed it and I placed second in ranking.

I was ecstatic for my placement and looked forward to my next competition. People began showing interest and I was introduced to potential sponsors who were now keeping an eye on me. Life was billowing with boundless energy and anticipation. It was the beginning of something special, I could feel it in the pit of my stomach, I felt unstoppable and nearly invincible. I sensed I was in alignment with something divine and it was the most rewarding feeling I’ve ever felt.