Summary

The author recounts a lifelong connection to water, particularly the ocean, and how it has shaped their experiences and choices, despite not always living near it.

Abstract

The author, who grew up far from the ocean, developed a deep love for water through annual family beach vacations. These trips, starting with early morning departures, created lasting memories of joy and tranquility. As an adult, the author's affinity for water influenced various pursuits, including rowing, scuba diving, sailing, and living by a river. Despite a healthy respect for the ocean's vastness and potential dangers, the author finds peace and a sense of calm in aquatic environments. The recent experience of sharing the beach with children has added a new dimension to the author's relationship with water, emphasizing the intergenerational nature of this connection.

Opinions

The beach is described as a "happy place," signifying its importance as a source of joy and relaxation.
Water is portrayed as a constant, gravitational pull in the author's life, influencing life choices and vacations.
The ocean's vastness instills a mix of respect and fear, particularly at night or during deep-sea dives.
The author values the changing nature of rivers, appreciating their seasonal transformations and the peace and harshness they can bring.
The experience of watching children interact with water introduces a new form of joy, centered on their developing fondness for aquatic environments.
Sunrises over water are particularly meaningful, providing a soothing and soul-feeding experience, even with the challenges of early mornings with young children.

Water Comes And Goes From My Life

But it’s a constant in my soul

Sunrise over a North Carolina beach in 2022; photo by author

I grew up hours and hours from the ocean. There was no body of water or huge river nearby, so it may seem strange that I have such a love for the water.

It’s all thanks to my parents. They made it a point to take us to the beach every summer. That was our vacation. They saved up and we drove hours to the beach every year.

I grew up going to beaches on the east coast of the U.S. Whether it was South Carolina, North Carolina, or Virginia, it didn’t matter. It was the beach. That’s all that mattered to me.

We would leave at 2 am when it was still dark outside. My parents would load us into the car in our pajamas. As soon as we arrived, I would jump out of the car and smell the salty sea air. That meant we had arrived.

The beach was always my happy place.

It meant long days of sitting on the beach reading. Swimming in the ocean with my sisters and cousins. Jumping the waves and diving through the big ones. Long walks on the beach with the water splashing at my ankles. Searching for good seashells. Falling asleep at night so tired after all the sun and salty air.

As I got older, it also meant drinking my morning coffee on the deck and watching the waves rush in. Maybe occasionally waking up early enough to catch a sunrise.

It’s funny that the beach made such a huge impact on me, given I spent only one week a year there. However, water has always been like a gravitational pull for me. I just want to be near the water and it has influenced some of my choices in life.

In college, I rowed. The early mornings and hard work were offset by the feeling of the water beneath the boat.
In my early 20s, I learned to scuba dive and centered some vacations around this activity. Underwater, I felt weightless. While diving makes some people feel anxious, it has always made me feel extremely calm. As a bonus, I get to look at pretty fish as well.
I joined a sailing club with a friend and I went on three amazing sailing trips. There is nothing better than falling asleep rocking with the water and waking up to an on-the-sea view.
I canceled other plans and extended my trip to Thailand by a few weeks so I could take more dive courses and dive for weeks straight on crystal clear ocean reefs.

However, there is something about the vastness of the ocean that still puts a little bit of healthy fear in me. Maybe it’s something very human to feel this.

I would never swim in the ocean at night. I only enjoy night scuba dives if they are guided by a dive instructor. The thought of what lurks in the dark, deep ocean scares me more than I would like.

Given my love for the water, it’s strange that I’ve never actively sought to live by the water. By happenstance, I lived for two years by a major river in the Netherlands and it was amazing. I would take daily walks along the river, no matter the weather. The river was always changing, depending on the season. It was a place to splash and swim in the summer, but it could be peaceful or harsh depending on the wind and rain. It could also be brutal and cause severe flooding as I saw in 2021.

Poppies on a misty morning walk by the river in 2021; photo by author

I have since moved away from that river. Life circumstances guided me elsewhere and that’s okay. After all, everything in life has its season.

I still return to the beach annually, except for during the height of COVID. A few weeks ago was my first time since the beginning of the pandemic.

It was also my first beach vacation with little kids in tow. That definitely changed the tone of a beach trip for me personally. Gone are the relaxing days of sitting and reading by the ocean. Now it’s full of splashing in the pool and early mornings and remembering to smear sunscreen onto pale little bodies.

It’s still enjoyable, but relaxing is not the word I’d use to describe it. There is a new joy in getting to see my kids develop their own relationship with the water and develop a fondness for a family beach vacation.

This year, I saw many more sunrises than I ever did on earlier beach vacations. It may have been with sleepy eyes and a wide-awake baby in my arms, but the sunrise over the water soothed my mind and fed my soul.

Water has only punctuated my life along the way. It’s never been a constant presence anywhere but in my mind.