Playing In Power

It has taken me more than four decades of living to fully appreciate this, but a good wetsuit is a wonderful thing. Long sleeves, long legs, thick and tight and warm. The ocean is never warm in this part of the world. But a good wetsuit can give you a couple of millimetres of protection and believe me those millimetres are everything.

When I’m suited up, I walk confidently into the water. I’m ready to catch some waves. My son is beside me but our bodyboards collide and we’re laughing as my daughter flies past us on a fast one. We cheer her on, pick up our boards, and go again. And again. And again.

My legs are tired, but the waves are never tired. They keep hitting me with the same power, they keep pushing me and pulling and pushing again. Sometimes they come up unexpectedly and break on top of me and take my breath away with cold and surprise, but I don’t mind. Nearby I see the waves breaking on the rocks at the base of a cliff, shattering into a thousand waterfalls and running down fast so they can hit the rocks again. And again. And again.

There is power in this water.

That’s why the lifeguard set the swimming zone well away from the rocks. That’s why he uses a loudspeaker to warn us that there’s a strong rip today so don’t go too far out. We can play here and have a great time—just as long as we don’t take this power for granted. When the cold waves slap us in the face over and over again, we remember that we are small and mortal and the waves are stronger than we are. And we laugh. This is the world God gave us. It is mysterious and powerful—and delightful.