Listening to the waves

 

How do we describe a sound as familiar as the surf?  I am sitting in a sand chair on our favorite Florida beach, entranced by the voice of the waves.  In my effort to truly notice the world around me, I want to hear it anew and not just accept how my mind has framed it.  So I dig my feet a bit deeper into the sand, close my eyes and listen.

The crash of each wave dissolves into a rising hiss, like bubbles in a poured drink or the tendrils of sparks on a firework.  Then again, the sound is like applause: the sudden burst trailing off into individual claps – but the rounds of ovations overlap as if different sections of the audience congratulate different performances.

Then again, the surf on the sand is the sibling to the wind in the trees – land and sea both enthusiastic children of an appreciated Father. 

            Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice;

                        let the sea roar, and all that fills it;

                        let the field exult, and everything in it!

            Then shall all the trees of the forest sing for joy (Psalm 96:11–12)

But it isn’t a continual commotion, a featureless wall of sound, like the unvarying splashing of a waterfall or the steady patter of rain.  This sound has a rhythm, a kind of respiratory pattern – an expulsion of sound followed by a slow, relaxed intake.

Breathe OUT.  B--r--e--a--t--h--e in.

Perhaps this is what comforts us so much about the sound of the ocean.  Subconsciously, we are listening to creation breathing.  We are soothed by its measured pace, gently admonished for our stress-induced shortness of breath.

WHY so h--u--r--r--i--e--d?

I have come here to learn how to breathe again.  I need to slow up, settle down, loosen my stranglehold on my schedule and breathe.  It’s not an eastern religion mindlessness I’m after, but the mindfulness of being in synch with the Creator.

Riding the rhythm of the waves into my own centered syncopation of praise.

All Thy works with joy surround Thee,
Earth and heav’n reflect Thy rays,
Stars and angels sing around Thee,
Center of unbroken praise.
Field and forest, vale and mountain,
Flow’ry meadow, flashing sea,
Singing bird and flowing fountain
Call us to rejoice in Thee.