Surf Lesson

Thursday, April 26- 

Yay- kids are back to school and guess what? More ironing, tidying… then took the dog to the groomers.  After the chores were knocked off the list, I walked from Curl Curl to freshwater and had a quiet time.  Freshwater is a smaller beach with adorable small houses tucked in the green surrounding the beach.  Then I ate at a sushi train and read book set in Tibet about Mt. Everest.  When I picked up Stef today, she ran into my arms, I picked her up and we stood their hugging each other for a long time.  How special to receive and give hugs.  They certainly are important.  This isn’t just me talking about the good ol’ warm fuzzies.  It’s a scientific fact.  Positive Psychology is a recent branch of psychology with the goal of studying and applying positive human interaction through achieving a scientific understanding of human interactions, success and happiness.  Much research has proven that children in homes receiving hugs regularly become more successful and seem much genuinely more happy.  But children aren’t the only ones who need hugs.  Adults do too.  However, we should also make note of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.  First a human must have his/her most primitive needs met, i.e. food, safety.  Once these are met, conceptual needs (such as self esteem, love & belonging) can be attended to, thus leading to personal growth and happiness.   To change the world, we should aim to meet all different levels of this hierarchy of needs.  Giving hugs boosts self-esteem while personally affecting people of all ages in a positive way.

Friday, April 27th-

The family is out of town for Mark’s fencing tournament so... house to myself!

I went hiking today at Curl Curl again.  Then in the evening, Mary came over and we made dinner- brucshetta bread with tomato basil and feta cheese, barbeque chicken wings, and baked pumpkin.  Then, we morphed into little girls and watched Swan Princess. J 

Saturday, April 28th-

We slept in and then I made Mary yummy Dutch pancakes.  Then I took her on the hike at Davidson Park under the Roseville Bridge.  The grass was still that beautiful bright green.  Families were setting up for a day of picnicking.  I wish I could take my family here.  Later, we went shopping at the Warraingah Mall for some more girl time.  I found a cute white jacket and lacy navy dress.  Mary has to babysit tonight, but my friend, Su, is having a birthday night at the Winery in Surry Hills.  It’s owned by the same people as Manly Wine, with a similar chill, vintage feel.  We sipped on wine outside until our tall glass table was ready. We nestled in large cushioned armchairs while talking about music.  Su works for a music publishing company and several musician friends met up for her birthday. One of her arists, Julia Stone, is an up and coming Australian singer. I shared about my different dreams of where I want to take my music.  It was fun talking about one of my passions. I always feel so connected when socializing with someone who shares my infatuation of music.

Monday April 30th-

The family was still gone for the fencing comp, so I headed to the beach for a surfing lesson.  I was a little nervous it would be cold, because its autumn here and today was overcast and breezy.  But the water was perfect.  Our teacher was a master of the waves.  He taught me step by step how to get up on a surfboard.  You align your board with the trees ahead.  Then look behind you as you lay on the board.  Slowly paddle and then perform 3 large paddles and slide up onto your knees, and then align your feet in the middle to stand up, looking ahead, not at your feet.  The waves were powerful.  It was hard to judge which waves to go for and which to push over.  
There are white waves and green waves.  The white waves are the waves that have already crashed and are now rolling in.  The green waves are the waves that are about to break further back.  The white waves are easier to catch because you can stand up and position yourself just right, since you are in shallow water.  We were on a sand bar with nice long white waves rolling in at a constant pace.  This increased our chances of success.  There were only 5 of us in this lesson so it was very personalized.  I made it up several times, I’m proud to say.  I drank about 3 liters of salt water, my nose was a running faucet and my eyes felt like salted boiled eggs.  My whole body was sore and I was having the time of my life.  It was so fun, standing up on a board, rolling up to the shore.  I never lasted very long, but it was a blast! I lasted longer than the boys but I was hurting the next day a bit.  They didn’t know how to conserve their energy.  The key is to wait for the smaller waves- not to have eyes bigger than your stomach.  And when the big waves come, arch your back on the board and push up over the wave.  Or push the end of the board down, to erect the tip of the board over the white waves.  Once I didn’t align the board properly when going over a large wave, so it rolled the board on top of me and the two of us did a twisting dance in the water.  It was a powerful and scary dance, but I made it up after a few rolls.  Another time, I made it up on the board, but came too close to the sand, nose-diving into the shore.  Next time I’ll have to remember to fall back, not forward when approaching the shore. 
Surfing is amazing.  I am so hooked.  When you make the wave, you feel one with the wave, becoming apart of the same energy.  Every time I got up, I was as giddy as a school girl. Again! Again! Again!    It's an art form and sport in the natural world.  You couldn't ask for anything more.