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It is said that the Devil strikes when a man is at his lowest point.
When a man is in his prime, he needs the help of no one, or so he tricks himself into thinking. He is either too busy with himself, or the Devil already has him.
But when a man is in need, and he is hungry and alone, that is when the opportunity for persuasion is at its greatest point.
As the story is told, after 40 days of fasting the prophet and messiah Jesus was approached by the Devil in the desert.
And so it was when I was approached, by an angel and a demon. And to this day I wonder how the path of my life was affected by that fateful day.
I was still a boy back in those days, stuck between a man and a boy. The life I had known had been robbed from me, and I was thrust into the world heartbroken and alone.
My entire life up until that point had been a lie I had believed, I had followed the path that society had laid out for me.
I had graduated from a decent college, had a decent job, a nice apartment in a good city, money, a car, and sufficient material wealth. On the surface it was fine, but inside it was hollow.
The love of my life up till that point had left me for another, and there was nothing more that I wanted than to be with her – but that was impossible, I had already tried. The job I had wasn’t something I particularly cared much for, and at that point all I really wanted was a gun to the head.
Like many other surfers, the sea was all that I had. On most days, every free moment was spent in the surf. It was the only thing in my life that I ever wanted to do, and at that point in my life it was all I had left. Thankfully, at least I was lucky enough that the “American dream” life had placed me in a city by the sea. And so on most evenings, after work, I would catch the last rays of light and paddle out for an evening sesh, no matter how bad the waves were.
It was on one such beautiful evening when I met the Devil.
I was surfing Newport beach, the waves were small and shitty, but the water was refreshing and the sky was a hazy, golden orange. The wind was slightly onshore, and the waves were about 1 to three feet – California size. The last hour had basically sent a bunch of wind swell closeouts. But still, it was nice to be in the water. As much as I told myself I wanted a wave in those days, deep down I didn’t really care.
And then, out of nowhere, a set wave came through. Along our jetty only came a closeout, but further down the beach on another jetty further south, the wave came in, and a lone figure took off on it. As if defying reality, the wave barreled, the silhouette pulled in, and then seconds later, made it out. That was the first sign something was strange.
I remember being mesmerized by the wave, it wasn’t till some people started chatting near me that I snapped out of it. There were a few more people in the lineup now, but there were three who most drew my attention.
Of those three, the third is faceless. His only importance in my memory is that he was talking to the First.
The First was a man with an afro. He had a big nose. His skin was tanned. He was lean. Tall. Strong, but lean. Surfer build. Middle Eastern complexion I remember thinking.
The water was perfect, we were all maybe wearing 3/2’s.
He had just gotten back from a trip to Bali, I overheard. Insane waves. Beautiful women. Warm water. Islands you had never even heard of. Couldn’t even dream of. Time of his life. He was going back soon. I vaguely remember something about him losing his bag.
Other than that otherworldly barrel that steamrolled through off in the eerie, misty distance, there were no other waves of note from that session. All I remember is that it felt so nice to be in the water.
I remember exiting, walking in the sand. The cold sand felt so refreshing between my toes.
That’s when the Second man came up to me.
A young man, maybe 18?
He had a handsome face.
Blonde hair, pale skin.
Good jawline. Shorter than me.
If you opened the Newport High School yearbook, he would have been the president.
Out of the blue, he told me I should come to the local church.
“All are welcome.” He said. Something to the effect.
He had such a warm smile.
I still remember to this day.
I thanked him.
I thought about it.
I had gone to church in college. Overall great experience. But something happened, I don’t remember what.
I was dating a girl at the time. I think that might have been what pulled me away.
But yes, I thanked him and walked away.
And then ran into the First man.
I ended up walking back alone with him to my car.
We chatted.
I don’t even remember what he said, or what we talked about.
All I know is that
He was taller than me.
He had a big nose.
And with God as my witness,
It took me 4 years
but,
I eventually became a surf photographer,
and flew to Bali.
**Fin**
