At times we find ourselves standing at the edge of life; watching, waiting, calculating.
We’re there at the shoreline, toes barely touching the water, taking in the surroundings, feeling into it, wondering if now is the right time to get in.

And sometimes, we simply don’t want to.
Sometimes it feels too scary.
The waves look too big, too wild.
We don’t know what’s waiting beyond that first step.

Standing at the ocean just a few days ago, having not been there for such a long time. 

I grew up with the privilege of holidaying in Greece as a child, calm seas, warm waters, no waves. The ocean there invites you in softly.

Very unlike the KwaZulu-Natal coast, where the waves are big and the water has a wild, unpredictable energy.

I only really learned to swim with waves in my thirties, and learnt how to swim properly at 38, and even now, they still feel big.
So I was standing on the sand, staring at the ocean thinking, How’s it going to be? Will I get dunked? Pulled around? What if it’s too much?

And then something inside me shifted.
I decided, it was ultimately a decision, I’m just going to do it.
No more thinking, no more waiting.
Just go for it.

I realised I could stand there all day, overthinking and analysing.
Or I could meet life, and myself  in the water.

Not needing to know how it would unfold, not needing it to be a certain way to feel safe.
Just trusting my body, trusting that I’ll find my way through whatever comes.

The first part was rough, it usually is. Are you feeling me right now?
The waves hit hard, the ground beneath me shifted. I am in a different element, no longer of stable ground, in water, fluid and ever changing.
Once I got through that, once I found my rhythm, I started to ride the waves.
Some small, some big.
Some splashing in my face, one even pulling my bikini top half off and all of it, life.

Life in motion.
Unpredictable, messy, beautiful.

And it made me think, where are you in your own life right now?
Are you standing at the shore, watching, not quite ready to step in?
Are you testing the waters, or maybe being tossed around, learning to find your footing again?
Or have you found your rhythm, letting the waves carry you?

The ocean teaches us what it means to surrender and participate to stop waiting for perfect conditions, and to simply dive in.

Take a moment to close your eyes and imagine the shore.
Where are you standing today?
What wave or season of life is calling you to step in more fully?
Take a few deeper breaths. Feel your body. Feel where you are.
When you’re ready, whisper to yourself, I trust the tides of my life.
And then DECIDE to take one small step forward for YOU.