I’m not here to argue theology, but I think it’s safe to say that most surfers recognize the supernatural in nature. Photo: Hamlin
I remember sitting in the back of the cave with my head throbbing as the cave filled up with water. The tidal surge had caught me with my head down as I walked along the edge of the cliff-lined shore. By the time I realized what was happening it was too late. The wall of water had thrust me to the back of a cave carved out of the cliffside. The only thing I could think to do before the impending impact was call out to God for help. And that’s exactly what I did.
“God, help me!”
The next thing I remember after slamming my head against the back of the cave was looking out through a 12 inch gap of air between the cave’s ceiling and the water’s surface. As panic started to grip me, I felt myself being rushed toward the opening as the tidal surge retreated. Acting purely on instinct, I swam as fast as I could with the current, and just as fast as I had been swept into the cave I was swept out of the cave.
They say there is no such thing as an atheist in the impact zone. I’m not here to argue theology with anyone, but I think it’s safe to say that as surfers we’ve all experienced a power greater than us. Whether it’s getting slammed into a cave or getting pounded on a day when we shouldn’t have paddled out, we’ve probably all been at the mercy of the ocean and its Maker at some point in our surfing lives. Waves, winds, tides – all that is nature. But the force that sets it all in motion, that exposes our mortality, now that is supernatural.
I think it’s astounding that as surfers, we get to experience a lot of things that the rest of society doesn’t have the privilege of experiencing. I’m definitely not one to make a case for how religious or spiritual surfing is; I’m not really in that camp. I surf because its fun. I absorb the beauty of nature, and I love it. But I will say that I’ve had some supernatural experiences as a direct result of my immersions in nature. Or maybe I should say I’ve had certain experiences in nature that have felt like glimpses into the supernatural. It’s sort of like looking at something through binoculars; an object that seems quite distant suddenly becomes much more visible.
I guess it’s easy to find the supernatural in an experience like the one I had in the cave – when it seems that life is so close to ending. But it seems equally applicable to a sunset, a moonrise, a dolphin surfing, or even being a stoked grom.
So does the supernatural and surfing go together? I don’t know, but it seems to me if we just look a little closer, we catch glimpses of the supernatural all around us. I’m sure a lot of people will say I’m crazy; that’s alright with me, I won’t argue that. But I will end with this quote from Amelia Barr, one of the 19th Century’s most prolific female authors. Barr states: “Whatever the scientists may say, if we take the supernatural out of life, we leave only the unnatural.”
