Surf's Up

Here is a special article written by my friend, Margo Chevers... its called 'Surf's Up'.
 
Life's lessons sometimes come to us when we least expect it.
 
I recently took my two kids, ages 4 and 5, on vacation to Florida. Breakfast at a beachside restaurant seemed like a great idea. We sat by the window and watched the waves crash onto the pristine, white sandy beach. The sound of the surf surrounded us during our meal and the obvious request of the kids was to walk on the beach.
 
The temperature was around 60 degrees, but being from New England, the girls wanted to dip their toes in the water. I held tightly onto their hands as we timidly tested the waters. To our surprise, it was quite warm.
 
The waves rose to over 2 feet and made a wonderful crash as they chased us up to dry land. But, as children are never satisfied with just flirting with the water, soon they were waiting in the surf while another wave crashed over the receding one.
 
Turning to make our way back to the dry sand, we looked down and our brains got confused-the water that was rushing in while simultaneously water was rushing back to the ocean. The brain couldn't handle the overload of conflicting information. I found myself staggering from my equilibrium being upset.
 
The girls tried it yet again - on their own. Although they were not even ankle deep in the water, the conflicting flow of water caused each of them to fall into the foamy water.
 
As they got up and looked to me for help, I reached out and led them to safety.
 
I then asked them if they wanted to learn how to get out of that situation easily. The 5- year-old agreed. I took her out and waited for the two waves to start to flow together in their conflicting directions and told her to look at her younger sister who was stationary up on the beach. I said, "Keep your eyes on her and just walk straight towards her." She focused on her sister and sure enough, she walked straight and tall with no hesitation. Her focus was on her goal and not on the confusing discord that was swirling around her feet.
 
Amazed, she asked to do it again. Yes, it worked every time.
 
It gave me the opportunity to tell her that if she always keeps her eyes on where she wants to go, she won't be distracted by all the things that are happening around her.
 
What a lesson for all of us. Too many times we look at what is happening in our lives right now-all the conflicting information and all the contradictions that are what life is made up of. And so we lose our balance. But, if we set our sights on our goals and keep them in our focus, we will be able to navigate the daily travails and come out where we choose to go.
 
Margo Chevers is a coach who works with people who want to gain more balance and focus in their lives. She works with individuals who are committed to getting the results they want from life.