Waves Of Life: The Wonderfully Horrifying Riptide | The Odyssey Online
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Health and Wellness

Waves Of Life: The Wonderfully Horrifying Riptide

An essay by Elizabeth McCloskey.

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Waves Of Life: The Wonderfully Horrifying Riptide
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Have you ever lived by the ocean? Been at the beach for a week or two? Experienced the crashing of waves? Well, if you haven't then let me tell you about the ocean. The ocean is a lot similar to life. The riptide in the ocean doesn't care. It is easily flowing even if someone is swimming with the currents. Its easily calming and wonderfully horrifying.

Life is unpredictable and so are the waves. They are calm at times and yet extremely violent and unpredictable. Some days the ocean is calm until a storm hits and it turns to a cold and scary place. It's not the warm and calm ocean you once knew. The ocean is deep and there's a lot more to explore than the shoreline.

Do you ever hesitate to walk into the ocean because you fear what will be below your feet? Do you feel this way in life? Whenever I am at the beach I slowly wander in and never jump in all at once. Sometimes I can convince myself to go all in and then I think "maybe I will dive in later". I will continue to make those comments until I am comfortable with walking into the ocean. Once I finally get in I realize I am always this hesitant and yet I have the time of my life with the waves. Can you see how this is a lot like life?

We are fearful people. We don't like change. We don't easily jump into something. Why do we hesitate? When we are walking the shoreline of life, it's easy to turn back in fear. We don't know what lies ahead so we hesitate and sometimes never take the jump. The truth is we are only afraid of the unknown and we miss out on something great. We start to question "what if I fail?" "What if they don't like me?" "What if I get hurt?" The more we experience the more we become fulfilled. We waste so much time hesitating and thinking what could happen.

Don't be afraid to dive into life. Make a straight run for the water next time your at the beach. Don't let "what if" creep into your mind. Life is all about the experiences. Be brave. Be bold. Be you.

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This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
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