…an unusually calm day at sea, not a ripple on the surface, glassy conditions and head high. A typical day out at Wilkes, a distance offshore from Tavarua, Fiji. The boatman drops me off into the middle of the ocean, a reef break, no land in sight. The reef is shallow, you can guess where to take off by he way the wave breaks right, consistently, like clockwork. It’s perfect, predictable, each wave you become one with the beast, carving it up, the rhythm is mesmerizing. Paddling out for another set, it gets uncanningly calm, no wind, thick humidity, dark clouds on the horizon forewarn of an impending storm in the distance. It’s at that moment the horizon goes black. This is no cloud; it’s a huge set rolling in. Easily double plus size of what’s been coming in, but I’m caught inside, the shallow part of the reef just two feet below my board. I gasp to breathe, but there’s no air; I take in a gulp of fear. My legs cramp, it’s tough to move my arms… paddle, paddle, harder, stronger. Thoughts running through my mind; I’m way out of my league here, I can’t surf something this big; there’s no way I’ll make it through before it breaks right on me, and rakes me over the sharp reef. A momentary lapse of reason takes over my body… holy shit, what have I done, what am I doing out here…
I wake up in a cold sweat, looking around me. I’m not in the middle of the ocean, but the middle seat of economy class Air New Zealand flight, looking down upon myself thinking what the hell have we just done? We’ve ditched two really good jobs, ones that we’ve put years of sweat, pain, and graduate education into achieving. Our beautiful home sits vacant, awaiting a tenant to rip out it’s heart and soul. Sold off our cars, rooms of furniture, and donated the business suits. Packed up the rest of our personal belongings into a big metal container called a “POD.” Exchanged it all for a couple of backpacks, a frequent flyer ticket to the land down under, two One World RTW tickets, and the next 14 months on the road 7x24 with each other.
Deep ujjayi breaths, I hear my conscience speak. This is just your rational side speaking, the side that considers and has heeded the expectations of American society for the past 20 years; work hard, earn your degrees, get a good job, climb the corporate ladder, accumulate lots of things and you’ll be happy. If you relax, the waves will roll over, and you’ll be fine. You’ll make it through, and be refueled with energy. A couple of breaths later, the wave of anxiety and fear does roll through, and I’m left with the adrenaline rush that so often kicks in… we’re really doing this, defying the norms and expectations that traditional society holds for us, and chasing our dreams, off the beaten path. At that moment I realize it’s really happening; albeit a bit surreal, but I’m not just dreaming, I’m really here. And we're on the road together to learn, experience, explore and live for 14 months...
