My Adriatic Adventure: A Reminder To Stay Curious, Continue Exploring and Ride That Wave

Brzet Beach, Omiš. Croatia.

After more than a week of temperatures in the mid-30s (Celcius), parts of Croatia got some relief yesterday.

It rained.

And oh, was it glorious.

I was on the beach in Omiš when it happened.

I saw something brewing in the sky.

I heard the rumble. 

While Mother Nature was busy sending us messages that rain was coming, 99% of the beachgoers politely ignored her messages.

I was one of those 99%

Part of me thought, hey, maybe it will pass us by.

The other part thought, well, if it rains, I want to be in it!

Because I am a pluviophile. And rain energizes me.

So I stayed.

Shelter from the rain. Brzet Beach, Omiš. Croatia.

The rain came down in Omiš around 11:30 am.

By the time it started, most beachgoers had moved to find cover.

I knew I didn’t want to get in my car. Because chaos.

Instead, I took shelter at a cafe on the beach.

I watched as the heavens opened up.

And I smiled.

I watched as a young boy, maybe 11 years old, ran across the beach.

And I smiled.

The kid, running across the beach

And then I returned to watching Mother Nature do her thing.

Ten minutes into the rainfall, I moved from where I was standing and noticed the same kid riding the waves in the sea with his two siblings (I knew it was the same kid because I was sitting next to the family on the beach).

For the next 20 minutes, three kids seemed to be having the time of their lives- with parental supervision.

Yes, I imagine some of you will read this and say it was not a good idea; something bad could have happened.

Yup. True.

But here’s the thing:

Nothing bad happened.

Instead…

Yesterday, for about 20 minutes, three siblings between the ages of 9 and 13 looked to be having the time of their young lives.

Yesterday, for about 20 minutes, three siblings shared a moment that will hopefully stay with them forever.

Yesterday, for about 20 minutes, three siblings experienced joy and happiness.

Of course, I do not know if any of that is true. But that’s how I saw it.

I watched as they jumped to meet the waves, testing to see if the wave or the child would come out on top.

I watched them stay close to the shoreline, figuring the waves usually came out on top.

I watched as they stayed close to each other, maybe to watch out for one another or figure out how to capture the moment in one shot —without a cell phone.

I watched them be children.

I watched them be curious, explore, and ride the wave.

And I thought, shouldn’t we always maintain these qualities?

Even though we developed these qualities as children…

Some of us stop being curious… because it’s too risky.

Some of us stop exploring…. because it’s too expensive.

Some of us become apprehensive about riding the wave…because riding the wave involves controlling what you can within a situation and leaning into what you cannot control. And as adults, that sometimes becomes more difficult for us to process because, at some point, we prefer to enter into situations we can control.

These last few years have been about returning to being curious, exploring, and riding the wave.

And it’s been good for every part of my being.

It’s been so good.

Of course, I have my moments and forget the importance of everything I just mentioned.

Thankfully, three siblings living their best lives yesterday reminded me of the importance of staying curious, exploring, and riding the wave.

And that was enough to make me smile.