The Words of an Old Surfer.
Hiroshi Yokohama
April 10 2011.
I know that my passion for surfing is sometimes unusual.
But I think it is a natural thing when it comes to sharing my thoughts with my friends who also love surfing and sometimes think the same way.
By the way, it is true that I was once very concerned about the surfing industry in the Philippines.
I established the first surfing school in this country, Yokohama Surfing School, and I also opened Yokohama Surfing Café around 15 years ago.
I don’t believe I am exaggerating when I say that surfing in the Philippines began here, whether or not you agree.
I was able to experience so many pleasures and exciting things as a pioneer. Some have called me a Surfing Guru.
I also went through a lot of sorrow and disappointment.
The struggles I encountered made me lose my passion for the surfing business and the whole community itself. But I decided to forget about those struggles and I eventually went back to soul surfing – no more events, no more contests, no more surfing business. Just surfing for myself as a soul surfer.
I have avoided acquainting with other surfers after I closed the surfing school and café. I started surfing by myself.
On the day of one of the La Union Longboard contests, I was surfing alone on 8 foot waves at Carille.
There must have been more than a thousand surfers crowding Monaliza for that event, and here I was surfing alone. I felt great sorrow and solitude, but I also got an ultimate feeling of freedom and it was then that I realized which direction I wanted to go as a soul surfer.
This was the start of my journey as a soul surfer.
I tried to search for points that I never encountered with other surfers and I was able to find several secret spots.
One day, there was a typhoon, and I went out to a secret point by boat but I had to pay extra to the boat man who hesitated to take me out because of the typhoon waves. We also had to bring along another boat for security. After we passed through the raging waves, I saw beautiful and huge breaks which I had never seen before. And these waves were only for me. I felt much solitude and sadness being alone, but also satisfaction that was overwhelming.
During a full moon, I paddled out in the middle of the night and surfed under the moonlight. I felt like I went back to ancient times. I felt like my senses got sharper and I was slowly turning into a beast. This was the new foundation I had developed, the world of moonlight surfing. This is the world of soul surfing.
One of my ultimate encounters as a soul surfer was what I called “Blue Heaven”.
I didn’t go to this spot for 10 years.
I decided to check out the waves again and see what has become of the spot after all those years. I fell back in love in an instant.
Through surfing here, I realized that surfing to me had previously been absent-minded and carefree. This place made me remember that you need philosophy and order in surfing.
My values and philosophies of surfing seriously changed after surfing here again.
The waves were severe. If you so much as blinked, the hollow wave will eat you, and you will become a victim of the shallow reef.
I was possessed by the magical power of this place and it kept me going.
Before dawn hit, I passed by a forest of mangroves and walked on the coral reef toward the point. Then paddled out.
I would then leave when the other surfers arrived.
I frequented that spot, and I would always surf there alone.
Continuing this practice, my life as a surfer had completely changed.
The wonderful woman brings up a man.
This ultimate woman who was called “Cobra” had trained me well.
She surely changed me in terms of surfing, photography, writing, and my overall lifestyle.
It was the combination of the photogenic waves, the beautiful location, and the amazing surfer (Edmond). All these things created such perfection, in a sense that it was impossible not to take great pictures or write one of a kind pieces.
I was so attracted to the waves and the atmosphere in this place. I was not able to think of, let alone even go to other points anymore.
I surfed, took photographs, and wrote my thoughts.
In the beginning of this letter I wrote “my passion for surfing is sometimes unusual”, but that might change to “my passion for Cobra is unusual”.
To me, surfing meant surfing at Cobra. It may be true that my pursuit of surfing was equal to my pursuit to surf Cobra because Cobra to me, meant soul surfing.
My art was taking photographs of this point and to continue writing about my passion for Blue Heaven.
I was on a pursuit of soul surfing at this heavenly place, when some friends appeared to me who also shared the same passion and thoughts as me.
They were Mara, Kanta, Edmond, Gladis, and other soul brothers and sisters in Blue Heaven.
Not only did these people never distract me from my rhythm as a soul surfer, but they also made me feel very comfortable when I surfed with them.
They became my comfort zone, to the point that I didn’t surf as well when I was not with them.
I met many young locals there through Edmond and Gladis and we all became very close. We always spent time together after surfing.
It was really fun and I felt like it taught me not to alienate, and that I didn’t need to be alone because I could be happy with these friends. We were compadres of the ocean.
I wanted to take good care of these friends, and treat them like true soul brothers and sisters.
Through these people, my solitary, unsociable attitude slowly faded away, and I gradually started changing to a gentle and peaceful person.
In return I wanted to convey my knowledge, experience and passion for surfing to this younger generation.
When this thought came to me, young surfers began to appear to me. There happened to be a lot of very attractive girls.
They were very intelligent and energetic people, and they had charisma and the traits of a leader in all of them.
They might not realize this by themselves, but I know that they have the capacity to lead the next generation.
They were only just realizing their love and passion for surfing.
I believe I inspired a lot of these young hearts.
There were two young students that would go to Blue Heaven by bus and stay by the beach in a tent. One was an excellent student of UP and she was a scholar. It’s amazing because they could easily use their charm and get what they wanted from people but they were not the type to do such things. They were like cowboys, in fact the soul surfer could also be called the lonesome cowboy. This means that they are real soul surfers whether or not they know this.
They were also possessed by the spirit of Blue Heaven just like me, and they associated with my soul brothers and sisters.
If they associate with my soul brothers and sisters it means that they are one of us. I told them that, and treated them that way.
They shared my passion for Blue Heaven and we always talked about how we could help one another as a Destined Community in Blue Heaven.
Another girl, takes trips around the world and has an article in a magazine and newspaper. She cares for street children by volunteering when she comes back to the Philippines.
Another girl had considerably good looks, but she didn’t like being together with other surfers. She especially hated city surfers. She said they are very boastful, and they only think of pleasing themselves. She got many invitations from them but never accepted. She was lonely, and she let out all her passion into Siargao and her friends from the island. She was a delicate and sensitive girl. She liked photography and writing.
I asked her what her dream was, and she said, “I just want to be a good surfer and share what I know to the next generation”.
Such a young and attractive number of people were gathered around me now.
I wanted to support these young people and I wanted to teach them all that I knew.
Actually, I shared my knowledge to them whenever possible.
However, now I’m wondering if my thoughts ever actually reach these people.
I also wonder if maybe I push my thoughts onto these kids too hard.
“You must do it like this, you must be like that.” I’m worried that my surfing philosophies and thoughts might make them feel that I am controlling them.
As for how I feel, meeting and hanging out with such young, attractive girls simply made my feel happy and excited again.
Maybe I dreamt that one day they would also want to be my disciples in surfing, and maybe I want to be like Mister Miyagi of Karate Kid, or the world of Kill Bill, like the master and pupil relationship of the movie “North Shore”.
I somehow made them call me “Sensei”.
However, I notice that some of these things are part of my selfish dream.
They are young, and they will still experience and do a lot of things before they reach their dreams. I sometimes wonder how big their passion truly is for surfing. How much of their heart is occupied by surfing?
When I think of these things, I sometimes feel that I pushed nonsense into these people about my way of surfing.
When I think about my past and how I was at a young age, I was not the best example in terms of soul surfing. I used it as a tool for my excitement.
They might be similar to how I was, maybe their drive is fueled by excitement like I was.
Maybe they only want to enjoy surfing as a romance for the summer moments.
They might not understand my intensity and what I always told them, “Surfing is my full time passion” and they may feel that it is a bit too much.
In fact, the more I talk about my passion and intensity for surfing, the more they might begin to feel uncomfortable.
If my teachings start to confuse and complicate things for them, then I am really saying nonsense.
Surfing should be released from such a thing and should be free from everything.
I chose the world of soul surfing to escape from such things and complications.
Now I am totally contradicting myself by pushing such teachings to these young people who are just beginning to find the passion for surfing.
The one thing that they should be learning is freedom, liberation of the mind through surfing,
And every surfer although learning from one another finds their own style by themselves.
There is no limitations or regulations in surfing.
I have almost crossed this line and maybe taught too much of my own style.
I intend to get back to solitude again and reflect upon myself as a soul surfer.
Old soldiers never die; they just fade away.
An old surfer never die; it is simply a state of mind.
PS Thank you Hiroshi for allowing me to repost this.
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