Paradise

Girmantas | Surfing | May 09, 2011

This never published, short excerpt of surfer novel  doesn’t need any introduction. Just free your mind and feel what is the life in paradise:

The wind, that has been blowing for a week already, made brothers’ muscles sore, hair – messy and started a tornado around their bonfire. Even though they have created some wind shadow with surfboards, they have realized that there was no chance to start the fire without the gasoline. Justin lit a match and before it hit the gasoline vapor one thought crossed his mind: “It’s going to be big!”. Right after the fire blast covered him in flames, neighbor surfer fireman from San Diego came to laugh at his burned arm hair. However, didn’t refuse some tacos that brothers were grilling on that fire. Sharing is never in vain, especially in surfer world. Now brothers will have a place to stay on the way up the North.

While divinely soft arrachera flavored with green and red chili salsas was melting in his mouth, Justin formed a thought in his mind. It sounded like “lavash”. That simple tortilla flatbread really do remind something from eastern Europe that they used to eat. But then sand hits his teeth: “It’s not some turkish kebab, it’s the food of Gods!”. Smile flashed on his face. Thats true, not everyday one enjoys such a soft grilled beef in the middle of the desert.

Next morning while brothers were discussing the shade of not funny sized mackerel they spotted earlier, local fisherman came to say hi. He was very happy to find gringos that speak his language and stayed for a while to tell his fishing stories. As he warmed up talking about white sharks that apparently come very close to these shores around this time of the year, fisherman uncovered what was he up to:
- Friends, do you like fish?
- Well, yes, – Matt answered.
- Lets exchange some fish for a pinch of weed.
This offer did put both brothers off balance. Matt thought of getting some more out of the fisherman:
- Is it impossible to buy weed here in town?
- No, – fishermen shook his head sadly. – There’s no weed in town. Only american tourists have it with them.
Brothers looked into each other. They both thought the same: “He thinks that we are American”.

A little later Matt came back with a shovel in his hand. Justin was reading a book. Their eyes met and they’ve understood everything without a word. They had to do it. They didn’t need any witnesses. It was a paradise here. Opposite to Mother Earth no time existed here. Everything was just flowing on it’s free path. Nobody washed dishes here after their meal. Not because they’re men, just simply because there is no secure place to hide clean dishes from the sand. Everything has some reasoning behind and it of course, pulls in every wanderer into it’s life cycle. Free life cycle. On top of that, everything is getting better all the time. Every next wave is better and bigger. Every dinner – more delicious. Every next cup of tea have less soap taste.

Morning exercise right before paddling out is traditionally finished by the cleaning of the carpet. Using archeological brush to take off all of the cultural layer that has been gathering on the carpet through the night. Just like “Karate kid” hero, cleaning the carpet with rotating moves, Matt exercises his paddle. He knows that today he will have to paddle as he never did before in his life. Soon dolphins attract brothers’ attention. A lot of them are playing in the water today. One of them have picked up the best wave of the set and half jumping half sliding on his belly have surfed it all the way down to the end. “Time to go to the water”, – even nature is calling.

Surfers paddled out behind the breaking waves and the whale came up to the surface. Rolled over a couple of times. Flashed his fin “high five”, took a couple of breaths and disappeared into the deep. Kyle who came last night straight from Colorado, paddled out to meet other surfers. Wave trains brushing the horizon far away South softly already started to come closer to the beach. Trains that have traveled straight from the other end of the planet and in a couple of weeks. Waves that have covered more than ten thousand kilometers have already lined up and stretched their wagons to the East. These start to bend and form an amphitheater, symbol of sport fights since the times of ancient Rome. Hard rocky reef, strengthened by lava tongues holds its ground and pushes wave face up. Soft offshore breeze roughens the peak and blows water spray back to the ocean.

Couple strokes across the wave to the steepest part of the peak, quick turn downside and Matt heartbeat stops. Brain is receiving information, calculating and sending it back at enormous speeds: to the right; weight a little to the back of the board; wave starts breaking; I’m not gonna make it; paddle more; paddle with your feet; sliding; NOW! Matt grasps his board rails strongly, pushes the board down the wave, lifts his chest and put his knee up. Surfers that stayed behind the wave try to guess if he caught this forever changing element of water. Everyone are waiting for him to show up on the other side. Eyes are looking for some sign of surfer or his board in the whitewater and rainbow colored spray. After a part of second that seem to last forever, from the other side of the wave comes a scream of joy. You can feel the vibe in the air. Matt palms show up above the wave peak. He made it.