Fermented Beverage of Choice: A glass of Warre’s Optima 10 year old Tawny Port
It is funny. You go through life without any sort of bump in the road or if there is a bump it is so minor you hardly feel it. Then out of nowhere a tidal wave blows through and takes your woody and your board and the lunch you packed for between tides…takes ‘em right out to sea and you are left standing on the beach scratching your head and swearing, “Feckin’ tidal wave!!! I just got that board!” That is how the past ten days have been. And when all is said and done, I may be able to salvage the woody and surfboards can be replaced.
From Valentine’s Day to yesterday, my birthday, a rather large tropical storm has ravaged leaving some good surf and some truly trearchorous waves. It started with a 4 hour visit to the ER on V-day for an infected absessed tooth that left me crying from the severe pain. I have five tattoos and a high tolerance for pain, but feck! that pain was too unbearable. Apparently a chipmunk with 10 acorns in his mouth looked better than I. And when I finally got on the pain medication, every emotion I had increased ten fold. You can imagine that I was not too pleasant to be around. Ask my dad…he witnessed it.
The tropical storm let up a bit from Sunday to Wednesday where all I was doing was brewing and recovering. The infection was bad enough where I was still feeling its affects 6 days later. Wednesday came, which was my birthday. I do not put much stock in birthdays. To me it is just a number. I am merely happy that I have made it as far as I have and by my calculations have only lived 40% of my life. There will be more surfing in that other 60% to be sure.
I was going along enjoying the day for what it was. It was sunny, a rarity for an Oregon winter day (although this winter seems to be filled with ‘em,) and I only had to work a half of a day. But by the end of my work day the winds picked up and about 25 miles off shore another wave was coming towards the mainland. This one would leave me a bit frazzled.
My pupil, my student, my brewing partner dropped a bomb saying that he just put in his notice. This news came as a shock because he had only been there a year and was just beginning to show some promise. It is hard as a “teacher” to watch a student take a big risk, especially when you feel it is too early for them. But regardless of all the instincts to try and save them from peril, all one can do is voice their opinion and let the student decide for themselves.
Initially I had taken the news personally as a slap in the face. I thought the student was being arrogant for thinking that after a year I have nothing left to teach him. I thought the whole thing foolish. But after a lot of introspection, I took it less personally and saw it not as a slap in the face. There are those that want to learn, and those who do not have the patience required. Not that I believe the student to be impatient. Just youthfully exhuberent. Patience comes as youth wears off.
This news, this wave was just the beginning. And once I am on the board, my focus is set and there is little that can be done to shake it. Later in the evening another wave came in to turn me inside again. This time it was a friend in “need” that the tide brought at me. All my life I have always put my friends ahead of everything. It did not matter that it was my birthday, my friend’s “need” came first. I celebrate life every day. A birthday celebration is unnecessary.
This wave essentially came down to me, once again, being too many miles away from where my heart was at that moment. A feeling of helplessness is all that can be felt at that moment. I know this all too well because as my closest friend was dying from cancer, I was what felt like millions of miles away. What I did learn from this is that you can only do so much regardless of where you are. And where you are is where you are, so do what you can from there. And I followed that advice today offering everything I can give for any friend and family member in “need.”
Ask anyone who has been around me. It is truly difficult to be around a Pisces, especially one as introspective as myself. You never know when they are just going to turn to the inside, remaining quite quiet, every thought being analyzed. Believe me, it is quite frustrating sometimes to live it, let alone be around it. But what better day than your birthday to go out surfing in introspection. The only thing I do not like about it is that I smell like seaweed.
Prost!
the confucian surfer brewer
PS: Congrats to the new Smithstanza born a day too late…I could have happily shared my birthday with her!