Ocean Words I Finally Understand

I ran to the ocean across the warm sand waiting for tears to burst from my heart, as often happens when I return to the sea. But on this clear morning, nothing happened, no deep emotions surfaced from my soul, and no words echoed through my body. The ocean was silent. But I could feel her aligning my breath with her waves. I stood there breathing in the salty scent, wondering why she was silent. Had I lost my ability to listen?

But no, I could hear her whispering to my heart, telling me to quiet my mind, to release the worry and concerns that haunt me. “Stop trying to reach a goal,” she said. “It is time to remember the future, knowing that you are already there.” For the rest of the trip, all I heard was “Empty your mind, none of these worries are yours to do.”

Eventually, I walked in peace calf deep in her waters, my mind quiet and my heart full. And somehow that sense of “at oneness” stayed with me, through an airport and turbulent flight, through days of working, through crazy news cycles, and times filled with love and friends.
I could feel it when I stepped out of my car and felt awe at the power of my legs to walk, and the joyful feeling of the heat on my skin. I felt the magic of being alive swirling around me during an unexpected hour writing on the patio of a small coffee shop. I floated out of an acupuncture session seeing the beauty of every leaf on the trees around me. And my dreams became profoundly vivid and included the many relationships and people in my life.

This is the lesson the ocean has been offering me since I was a child, that I am enough. The past does not define or limit me. Every journey is unique and guided by our choices and our soul’s craving, All I need do is align with that journey, cease judging my experiences, stop listening to fearful voices, and embrace who I was always meant to be. This is what she has always whispered to me, telling me that I can travel with the ocean in my soul. That day I finally understood.