Body Surfing at 53

The lifeguards spotted a blacktip shark this morning, so it’s a while before we’re allowed in the water. 

It’s low tide, and we’re able to walk far out into the waves when we get in; the surf is gentle, swells and troughs rolling in from a flat horizon.

I watch the waves until I find one that feels right, and then, turning toward the shore, I push off the bottom and swim with the wave until I feel it catch me, the crest foaming and churning around me, and I and the wave roll into shore in a process that feels close to flying.

Later that night, I try to stand up from the couch and have to really concentrate just be upright.