Greatest gifts ever

When you think about the greatest gifts you’ve ever gotten for Christmas, odds are you think about that bike you got when you were a kid, or the train set you swore you’d never get, maybe your first Nintendo system or lord knows what GI Joe base you always drooled over in toy catalogues. That same euphoria you had as a kid is somewhere deep inside you and you just need to get the right gifts to evoke the right reactions. Maybe you wanted your wife to dress as Mrs. Clause and that gets you going. Maybe you wanted a new car. Maybe you wanted that iPod people so rave about, even if you insist on listening to eight tracks and vinyl. Maybe you even wanted that fat bonus from your job.

For me, this Christmas has brought me two of the best presents ever, apart from a supporting cast that remind me just how lucky I am in this life. This last week, I had one of my two best friends over for part of the weekend and the last times he’s been here, we’ve made a point of going to surf as much as his stay allows. That means waking up at 7 no matter what, and going for a surf. This past week we went surfing twice. Both times the conditions were excellent and the second time I was quite mellow and relaxed. That’s because the day before, I’d ridden two of the best waves in my home spot and he got to see both of the waves on first row.

There’s something about getting a great wave that is exhilarating. Having people you know and surf with see your wave makes it all that much better. For one of the waves, I was being asked if I was going and my answer consisted of a simple hell yeah. When I dropped a weird warpy ledge, the whole wave threw over me and a dry five foot barrel let me traverse it for about 4 seconds. I passed about three sections and thought I wasn’t going to make it more than once, but Father Christmas proved me wrong and let me out of the slab with a gentle hiss of barrel. A while later, another wave came by with my name on it and yet again I was asked whether I was going or not. My reply was I’M GOING and a few seconds later I launched into one of the biggest air rolls I’ve ever thrown at my home spot, and that’s saying something. Once again I had the joy of having had good friends seeing me launch into oblivion and land the move and when I think about it, Christmas Day just couldn’t get any better for me, but thanks to friends and family it did.

Here’s hoping Santa was just as jolly with you.

Cheers.