Sunset Soul Surfers is a “feel good” series capturing some
of my most memorable sessions set during the golden hour when the endless ocean
horizon swallows the sun and the sky is God’s canvas. When we wait and watch the waves curl towards
the shore. We select the ones we will
dance across, the ones we will share, and the ones we let pass, all the while
witnessing God’s artistic genius unravel across the ever-changing backdrop.
“Oh, how sweet the light of day, And how wonderful to live
in the sunshine! Even if you live a long
time, don’t take a single day for granted.
Take delight in each light-filled hour, remembering that there will also
be many dark days.” – Ecclesiastes 11:7-8 (Message Bible)
My life in Florida goes fast, as I filled my hours with work. The lack of quality waves motivated me to spend as many as 70 hours a week between three jobs. Money earned equals waves to ride and a ticket to fresh worlds to see. So I went to work on a Saturday night in December, but a cold front sent a chilly draft through an outside section of the restaurant and sent me and another server home and free from work that evening.
Megan was about to close up the surf school that I passed on
my way home, so I decided to stop by. I
intercepted Bailey, Patrick, and Kit, other fellow instructors who were
returning from the boardwalk to report fun-looking lines on the surface of the
Atlantic.
Spontaneous and free, two elements of surfing I adore, we
all made the consecutive decision to paddle out for a sunset surf. None of us had our own surfboards, and I didn’t
even have a swimsuit or my wetsuit. The
surf school offered plenty of foam longboards that we used for surf lessons. And I didn’t let the fact that I didn’t have
a swimsuit or wetsuit hold me back and changed into one of the surf school’s
wetsuits.
