Oh, That was Awesome!

On a beautiful fall day, our family went to Cocoa Beach in Florida.  It was about 85 degrees and a perfect occasion to enjoy the calm and consistent waves at the beach.  The water was shallow enough to walk out past the breakers, and many people enjoyed their attempts at surfing the waves.

I love swimming and marched right into the surf.  While I was jumping over and into the waves I thought about how waves develop.

Waves on the beach area are caused by open water waves coming in contact with the bottom as they approach the shore. This causes the waves to rise up until they become a breaker, when the top of the wave falls over itself. The bottom of the wave is dragged by the bottom and also by the undertow of water returning from the beach to open water, while the top of the water keeps moving forward, causing the breaker to curl over itself.

~ Source: The beach

Some waves were higher than others but all of them were a powerful force, and I could feel the back wash under my feet which sometimes was so strong that I lost my balance.  One swell was very high, and I could not jump over it; it completely took me off my feet, and I got swirled under.  I developed great respect for the force of the water and was in awe of the beauty as well as the energy which I received from my bathing experience.

After my invigorating experience I thought some more about how awesome the ocean is with its saltwater’s healing and cleansing effects.  Even getting my hair wet turned out beneficial because of all the minerals in the water; it increased the volume of my hair.  My nostrils felt cleaner, too; they got rinsed with the salt water.  Overall, swimming in the waves gave me a great workout; and I had a few hours visiting a ‘natural spa.’  Walking on the sand was a good massage to my feet.

Of all the experiences in Florida I appreciate going to the beach the most.  It was nice swimming at the resort and going to SeaWorld, but nothing beats swimming in the ocean.