My Horizon Elusion

My Horizon Elusion

While vacationing alone in DR, I had decided that I was going to try some things that I had been afraid to try on previous vacations. I went to the beach several times that week and I saw a man teaching people about surfing. Prior to going on vacation, I had taken swimming lessons and I felt that I was ready to try surfing, but in the baby pool only. I waited until the instructor was alone to approach him and ask how difficult it would be to learn to surf. He could tell I was not sure whether or not I really wanted to do it, so he gave me some information and told me to read it over, go online and then return the next morning and he would be there if I was still interested.

That is exactly what I did. I studied, and read up on surfing and prayed a lot about whether or not I had learned what I needed in swim class. I was not afraid of surfing, I was afraid of drowning. I got up early and thought about eating, but decided that I did not need food weighing me down on that thin little board. I strutted myself out the door and down to the beach, with my towel in my hand. There he was, Tony, the instructor. He remembered me and proceeded to ask me several questions. One of which was, “Can You Swim”? Of course, I was confident that I could since I had just had swimming lessons and was swimming up until I came on vacation. I said with clarity that no one could mistake, “Yes I Can”. I had no intentions of backing out, especially when I looked at Tony and saw the muscles in his arms, legs, chest and even his neck. If I did go under, I knew he would be more than capable of saving me. Not that I had any intentions of going under water.

Tony got a board out for me. I looked at this thin board and as doubt set in, Tony stepped up. He told me that I have to think of the water as my playground and I had to think about the winds, the waves and tides and know that they are constantly changing. My mind was racing and so was my heart. He told me the importance of the surfboard. He told me about the learning curves. He told me a lot about surfing.

The lessons began. Tony gave me some instructions and told me that he would be close by if I got into trouble. Two hours later, I was on the water knowing that once I stood up, I could wipe out. Wipe out? What? With Tony’s encouragement and my stupidity, I stood up when I saw the wave coming.

What in the world was I thinking? Had I lost my mind, was it his handsome face and all those muscles? Whatever got me out there, I was praying got me back to land. Oh, I am getting ahead of myself let me backup. I stood up when I saw the wave coming. I was doing it. I got so excited that I forgot everything that he had just taught me. Well, as you can guess, you know who wiped out. I hit the water so hard that I could not see straight. Everything was a blur. I went down and came back up several times. I am not sure if it was the last time I came up or not, but on the horizon, I could see a sailing ship. Was this my imagination, had I drowned and a sailing ship was coming to get me? I was sure. Then I could feel myself swimming towards the sailing ship and in the distance, I could hear Tony saying, “No, come back.

I did not remember the surfing stuff at all. The importance of the surfboard, who cares, I was trying not to get hit in the head with that surfboard. The learning curve, what’s a curve? Did he mean the curve of the wave that knocked me down? I was lost, but I was trying desperately to get to that sailing ship that I saw on the horizon. I still was unsure if my eyes were playing tricks on me or if there really was a sailing ship. Why was Tony trying to keep me from getting to the sailing ship? I had decided that there was a sailing ship on the horizon and I was going to get to it. Maybe Tony was trying to stop be because he could not see it. Yeah, that was it he could not see the sailing ship. That was the only explanation that I could come up with in my mind. I was the only person who could see it.

My arms started to get tired and I was no closer to the sailing ship than I was when I first started swimming towards it. What was happening? Was the sailing ship moving? Was I actually swimming towards the sailing ship? Somebody please help me, I do not know what is going on.

Suddenly, my blurry eyes opened and there was Tony looking down at me. Candi, are you okay? I couldn’t speak. I looked past Tony as my eyes searched for the sailing ship. Where is it, I know it has to be here somewhere? I struggled to speak and then it just came out, “Where is the sailing ship”? Tony and everyone else who had crowded around me looked shocked. Tony asked, “What sailing ship, what are you talking about”? Then he asked everyone to step back and to give me some air.

I finally was able to get up and walk, with Tony’s help, to the waiting ambulance. Tony assured me that there was no sailing ship on the horizon. He said that this sometimes happens to surfers who get wiped out.

Surfers who get wiped out, hmmm? I guess I am in that category, a surfer. That’s pretty cool, but what would really be cool is seeing that sailing ship on the horizon just one more time before I return home.

The next day there was a knock on my door. It was Tony and he asked if I wanted to take a drive. I agreed and we ended up at an art museum. I got my wish. There was a painting there entitled, “SEEN BY WIPED OUT SURFERS”. We looked at each other and laughed. If there are others who saw the sailing ship on the horizon, then that means I was not losing my mind.

I have gone back to DR several times, but I did not try to surf and Tony is still there. I wouldn’t change my experience for anything in the world and I have decided to stick to swimming in swimming pools only.

NEVER STOP HAVING NEW EXPERIENCES.

R.Y. Burke