Page 39 of Riding the Waves

“Mummy!” Billy shouted from the beach. “You’re supposed to try and stand up.”

“Thanks for the tip,” she called back, with a hint of an eye roll. “I’m going to try again.”

Damian was sitting on his board, legs dangling at either side of it while he waited for her to make her way back out to him.

“That was some good advice from Billy,” he told her with a grin.

“I felt completely off balance. If I’d have stood up, I’d have fallen straight in.”

“You were too close to the nose,” he explained while she manoeuvred herself to sit on her board, managing it reasonably gracefully. “You need to keep your weight further to the back. Are you ready to try again? This looks like a good wave …”

“I’ll give it a go.”

“Let’s do it,” he said, shifting to lie on his board too.

While they paddled in unison, he shouted encouragement to her, but she could barely hear him over the rush of the water and the sound of her internal chatter as she tried to remember where her hands were supposed to be and what she should be doing.

As she moved into position to stand up, she lost speed and the wave rolled on without her. Pouting, she slipped off her board, into the waist-deep water. She watched Damian make a few twists and turns on the wave, looking as though he was born to be on a surfboard.

“At least I get to say I told you so,” she called to him when he headed back out to her.

“How so?”

“I can’t surf!”

“You can surf,” he said, turning her board and pushing both of them further out as he waded through the water. “You were always a natural.”

“Were might be the crucial word there.”

“It’s kind of like life,” he said without looking at her. “You used to have no fear and would just dive in and assume everything would be fine. Now you weigh everything too carefully.”

“I’m trying to figure out where the practical surfing advice is in that little nugget.”

A dimple popped in his cheek. “Stop overthinking it. Follow your instincts instead of thinking about where your hands should be. If they’re in the wrong place, you’ll automatically correct it.”

Amy hauled herself onto her board and paddled out a little further before turning towards the shore. “You’re saying my problem is thinking?”

“Yeah. There’s no place for brain power in surfing. And no, you don’t need to crack a joke about that being why I’m so good at it.”

Grinning at him, she clamped her lips shut. “Okay. No thinking this time.” She was vaguely aware of Damian beginning to paddle beside her as her arms worked furiously to get speed up. This time she didn’t hesitate – as soon as it felt right she hopped up to her feet. Keeping her body low, her legs worked to steer the board.

“I’m doing it!” she called happily when Damian cheered from somewhere over her left shoulder. A breeze lifted her hair from her shoulders and a mist of sea spray tickled her cheeks.

Losing speed as the wave fizzled out, she jumped into the shallow water. “That was amazing!” she called to Damian. “I did it!”

“You were awesome,” he said, raising his hand to high-five her. “I believe it’s me who gets to say I told you so.”

“Maybe,” she conceded as she looked over at the beach. “Boys! Did you see me?”

They shook their heads, only briefly looking up from the hole they were digging.

“I stood up!” She looked back at Damian. “I guess I need to go again, since my audience got distracted.” After taking a couple of steps she noticed he wasn’t following her and flicked water at him. “Come on!”

“I can see what’s going to happen here.” He strode after her. “You didn’t want to get in the water and now you’re never going to want to get out.”

“I forgot how much fun it is,” she said, feeling the tingle of sunshine on her face. “I knew I used to love it, but I’d completely forgotten why. It’s such an amazing feeling to ride on a wave.”

“It really is,” he said wistfully.

---