Trey Smith
Since moving to Ocean Shores, I take Jaz to the beach every morning for exercise. On most days, we arrive at or just after sunrise. In most cases, no one else is on the beach -- at least within eyeshot. My dog chases seagulls or sticks that I toss into the surf. Me? I watch the waves ebb and flow, ebb and flow. Mesmerized.
A person can be a Taoist (or simply find symmetry in Taoist metaphors) anywhere at anytime, but it is so much easier at the beach! The concepts of transformation and ever returning are on display 24/7. The waves coming in quickly transform into the waves going out. While water constantly recedes toward the ocean, it concurrently always migrates toward land.
It is a symphony with no apparent beginning or end. From the standpoint of my singular life, the tides have been this way from before the time I was born and will remain so long after I die.
When I am on the beach, I am at peace. I understand the unknowable just a wee bit more than at any other time. Watching the rhythm of the waves, the words of the Taoist sages ring true...wordlessly.
This post is part of a series. For an introduction, go here.
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