How I started surfing
I have always loved being in the ocean. I used to live in Western Sydney, Australia, which is about two hours away from the coast. Because of this, I’ve never had the chance to truly deepen my connection with the ocean and nature. I’ve only really done day trips and road trips with friends now and then to the coast. Deep down, I knew living in the city wasn’t the life I wanted.
Life is funny, and everything happens for a reason. I got thrown a spanner in the works and in 2021, I found myself living in the Margaret River region in South West, Western Australia. It’s a beautiful part of the world, a coastal country town with a raw and rugged coastline and hundreds of surf spots only a stone's throw away.
I did not start surfing until late October 2022 when my partner gifted me a pink soft top for my birthday. It was a no-brainer that he took me out for a surf that same day. I remember him pushing me onto small green waves at Bunker Bay and I was surfing on my belly, laughing like a 7-year-old girl in a lolly shop. Little did I know, that was the start of a long-term relationship with the ocean.
Within one year of surfing, I have learnt a lot. I have learnt how to stand up on my board, how to turn, etiquette and so on. Surfing is a sport that requires continuous non-linear learning. Surfing has enabled me to have a deeper connection with nature. Eventually, I found myself going on surf trips in tropical islands to experience different waves such as Siargao, Philippines and Lombok, Indonesia.
The biggest lesson surfing has taught me through and through is patience. The conditions will not always be ideal. The next surf may be a week later. The sets may be twenty minutes apart. You may not catch the wave you’ve waited so long for and paddled for. However, none of these equates to the joy and bliss when you finally catch the perfect wave, when every worry and every thought disappears because you are too focused on enjoying every second, every moment of riding your wave. It is all about patience, bliss and kindness. That’s what being in the water and Mother Ocean is all about.
If you told the version of me seven years ago that I’d end up living on the coast and surfing most days, I would have laughed at your face out of disbelief. I hope stories like mine continue to be shared because I know there are so many people out there scared to make a change for themselves and have a go. I hope you get the courage to start, to do things you’ve always wanted and live the life you’ve always dreamt of!
