Live to Surf

Three little words uttered by my daughter last Saturday will make me smile the rest of my life. Of course there are a number of phrases she says that make me smile, including a very popular three word phrase such as "I love you". While that will always make me melt, the new phrase she said was music to my ears and warms my heart nearly as much - "I surf daddy!"

That's right. My 26 month old surfs! Ok, so it's not the traditional surfing that you may think of, but in her innocent little heart she surfed that day at the beach. Never mind that dad wasn't there to share the moment with her (he was actually surfing out in the lineup), but mom and grandma, both non-surfers, showed her ropes with mom taking the reigns and helping Grace hang ten (alright, so they were her fingers over the end of the boogie board).

It appears as though the countless number of hours watching such classic surf movies is paying off. We regularly watch great flicks like "Surf's Up", "Step Into Liquid", "Riding Giants" and then coincidentally, while we were getting ready to leave the house, we caught impressive surfing in "Blue Crush" where Grace was captivated by strong, talented women riding sizeable waves.

Last Saturday was the day I've been waiting for my entire married life (sorry wife) - the day my child realized the joy of hitting the waves. Granted, the waves she rode can barely be classified as waves, but we're going with it. We're not sure what caused her to grab that boogie board and head for the water all on her own. Did she see her cousins and their friends riding out in the water, or was she inspired by her dad grabbing his board and heading to the outside lineup? Or perhaps it's just in her genes. No matter what the reason, she decided to surf!

Now begins the lifelong pursuit of the perfect wave, the great ride and the marvel that is surfing. As I write this, I begin to question if this is the greatest day as a dad, or perhaps the saddest. For my little girl shall now go the rest of her life always searching for, but not necessarily obtaining, that perfect ride.

With the advantage of age, I know that the perfect ride is always one wave away. Sure, I've had my share of great rides and ridden on some fantastic waves, but I've yet to get that perfect ride. It's a quest not easily achieved, but a journey worth embarking upon. So yes, it still is a great day!