TWSA round IV

i've written several times about the Life Rolls On life-changing event They Will Surf Again.  i wanted to share my last event back in august.  better late than never!  i love to look back and remember each individual and unique experience, and to give outsiders insight on the kinds of things someone with a disability can still accomplish, and also to acknowledge the people out there taking the time and effort to present us with these amazing opportunities to enrich our lives.  

(sadly, this time, my most exciting time has no decent photos.  we put all of our belongings and cameras in the car because of the storm.  all we got are some camera phone photos from my boy toy, which are better than none!)

i called it a life-changing event because it really is. as someone who thought i'd never get in the ocean again, i still remember and will never forget the first time i was carried on a surfboard like a princess into the ocean. since then, i've been to four events total and each time was as amazing as the last.  most recently in august, i drove down to virginia beach for my 4th and most absolute fun venture into the deep blue. a bit more stressful than previous times  (we had some issues last year with a certain volunteer trying to cut my time in the water short, which sadly happened again this year.. advice to any interested surfers, keep your eye on the time and don't take a second less than 30 minutes!!), but amazing nonetheless. early on in the day, i was asked to switch my surfing time slot with someone who supposedly had to leave early.  i'd hate for someone to miss out on such a fulfilling experience, so i agreed.... not knowing a storm was headed our way.  the sky increasingly got darker and darker as the knot in my stomach grew larger and larger, worried that i drove 6 hours to miss out on one of the things i look forward to most all year. it was about 15 minutes until my time slot when that dark, angry sky started to rain.  

finally, it was my time and literally before i could even blink, i was in the water and out at sea. the water was cold, the waves were huge, and i was in my glory. despite all the stress of the day and the storm coming in, i had the greatest time. sometimes you get good waves and sometimes you don't.  in my 3 previous surfing experiences, i had a variation of good and not so good.  due to the storm, the waves were large and rough and it was a blast to ride them to shore, to crash and flip into the water.  i hadn't even noticed halfway through that the skies started to clear and turn back to that normal pretty pale blue.  whereas the waves were an absolute blast, it was also the most terrified i've ever been.  

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i rode the waves all the way back to shore, where the head of my board crashed into the wet sand and i went flying off.  every time. i'm pretty sure that shouldn't have been allowed and may have even been dangerous. next time i'll be sure to let the volunteers know not to let me go that far on my own. i don't need an even more screwed up spinal cord! so, every time i'd fall off, i'd lay in the sand waiting for help back on the board, which sometimes resulted in more waves crashing onto me and more terror filling my soul. 

you wouldn't believe the amount of sand gathered in my bathing suit. handfuls and handfuls of it.  in my bikini, on my back, in my shorts, in my hair, my ears, everywhere!

HUGE, huge thanks to LRO and the volunteers that stayed throughout this mess.  i'm forever grateful to them and their dedication to helping me and others like me. it, of course, wouldn't be possible without them. 

take a look at the posts and photos from all my surfing experiences HERE!

hammy mcChum

meet my latest creation, hammy mcChum.  i've had this idea for ages and recently felt motivated to get one started: customize a figure into a great white shark, using real-life shark teeth. i did stab myself with the shark little teeth plenty of times, but i absolutely love the contrast between the real teeth and the painted clay. i couldn't have been happier with the outcome, seeing as i didn't even know if it would work at all. this is just the start of using real animal accents on my figures. so many ideas, so little time.

unfortunately for me, i predicted my sister (hunter of sharks teeth) would see hammy and "claim" him and i'd lose my new favorite figure. instead of putting myself through the pain, i stayed unattached as i worked on it, and mentally prepared myself to give it to her for her birthday (although it broke my heart into a million pieces to give him away.) best present ever.

REAL SHARKS TEETH!

sometimes i love my figures pre-paint as much as i love them all painted and finished.

they will surf again!

saturday, june 18 marks the day i went in the ocean for the first time since my "injury." for the first time in nearly 11 years, i was able to feel the rough ocean waves crash against my face and body, the taste of the salty water down my throat and up my nose, the wet sand sticking to and hiding in every crevice of my body with no hope of brushing off for an unnatural amount of time. it was easily one of the most amazing experiences i've had in my lifetime. it's amazing how something that used to be so familiar to me felt so unique and brand new. i can thank life rolls on for that, and the wonderful they will surf again event that i was so proud and lucky to be able to have participated in.  to fill you in on what TWSA is, click here. i didn't know what to expect, but as i sat and blankly watched other disabled surfers riding waves and flipping their boards and falling helplessly into the water, panic set (in even more than it already had). i had trouble listening to anything anyone said or focusing on anything but my squirming tummy. i was basically blacked out up until the point that i got hit in the face with the first wave.

the surfboard was altered with two handlebars attached, and i cannot stress enough how tight i was grasping onto them. the phenomenal volunteers did their best to raise me over each oncoming wave, but the big ones felt like i was getting hit by a truck every time. the ocean literally beat me to death, but i never let go once. i was holding on for dear life and every inch of my upper body was unbelievable sore the following few days. when all was said and done and i was carried (still on my board) back onto the beach, i finally let go of the handles where i felt and saw my hands shaking.

there were volunteers everywhere, and i mean everywhere. (you can see above how many there were in the deeper water. it looks like i'm in the middle of a swarm of sharks ready to attack.) i was surprised at how safe i actually felt despite having no real control over my body in the water. basically how it worked, there was a group of volunteers who carried me out over the shallow water, until passing me off to the deeper water volunteers who swam me out to sea over each oncoming wave and set me up for a wave to ride all the way back down to the beach, where that same original group caught me (or saved me if i fell off the board) and repeated the same process again. while i was holding on with every ounce of strength i had, my arms were killing me but i refused to take a break because i didn't want to waste a single moment since time was limited. but all the while i was impressed and amazed at my team for their hard work and dedication. they must have been exhausted from pushing bodies out into the ocean over and over again, but all with a smile on their faces. they were amazing and i'm incredibly grateful for every single one of them. obviously, i wouldn't have had been able to experience this if not for them.  

just the fact that i was in the ocean was the biggest thrill for me since it has been so long. every memory i have of being in the ocean is from when i was a kid. the last time i was phsyically able to was when i was just a kid, and i think that's what made it so special for me. although riding a wave all the way down to the shore was a blast, and i am fully addicted. i thought i'd be terrified of falling off the board, but even that was actually really fun.

video! i know, it's kind of awkward to watch. also, you can stop watching after i flip over, i think my sister just wanted to record herself running on the beach?

 

i have a ridiculous amount of photos (the more the better, i say) but here are just a few more of how things went down, my team, and of course surfing:

i'm a real boy!

life rolls on's event "they will surf again" in wildwood crest, nj this past saturday, june 18

a really special and amazing day for me

more photos and details about my first time in the ocean in 11 years coming soon!

fantastic photos courtesy of http://www.moondoggiesurfer.com/, who were printing out free photos for surfers that day, giving all of us a chance to bring home a reminder of our special day.

adaptive surfing

if all goes as planned, on saturday i will be squeezing myself awkardly into a wet suit and basking in the sun as i'm thrown into the ocean to the sharks. against my better judgement, i'm going to try surfing for the very first time. is it sad that i'm more scared of being eaten alive than drowning? i've spent too many years watching shark week's shark attack stories while thinking i'd never have to worry about it ever again. i'm irrational.

life rolls on puts on an event called "they will surf again"

"They Will Surf Again, a no-cost program underwritten by Life Rolls On and generous underwriters, is the flagship program of Life Rolls On. TWSA utilizes a surfing experience to push the boundary of possibility for those with SCI. It's not all about the surfing, it's about showing that anything is possible!

Individuals with spinal cord injuries from around the country gather together for a day of surfing, inspiration and camaraderie. Some have not surfed since their injury, some have never surfed, some surf all the time despite their varying mobility. TWSA pairs roughly 7 volunteers with each surfer, for a day of excitement, joy, and best of all, surf"

i'm absolutely terrified by the idea of this and every thought i have about it, but i can't think of a single reason why i shouldn't try and experience something new and so seemingly impossible. this will be my first time in the salty ocean in nearly 11 years.