Nadine and I spent some time over in Maui recently and visited the shore around Paia. One of the wonders we saw were wind surfers plying their skills to the ocean waves. It was a beautiful sight as they would go out from the beach about 2 miles or so and then come back into the shore. They did this over and over, sometimes falling to the rough waves and having to right their sails again to continue their sport. It was a sight to behold with each of us saying that we would never be able to do what they are doing, let alone wanting to do it.

Afterwards we talked to someone who was a wind surfer and he gave us a much deeper understanding of what we had just watched. He informed us that there are many sharks that swim just under the wind surfers. The reason they seek to right the ship if they fall is that there is great danger of being bitten by a shark if they remain in the water too long. They want to get up quickly so that the danger in the water won’t overtake them.

It brought new meaning to their sport doing it in the ocean. They do it because their passion for wind surfing is greater than the dangers that they could experience. Passion caused them to focus not on the dangers below the surface but to focus their attention on the love and excitement of riding the waves. Their passion caused them to look at the positive and not dwell on the negative. For me, my focus would be on the sharks in the water and would drive me never to get on a board. But not them. Passion covers over the possible danger which drives them to pack up daily and go to the ocean for the exhilaration of their board flying through the water.

It caused me to pause and ask the question to myself about what I am passionate about. What are you passionate about? Focusing on the possible negative aspect can stifle our creativity and our journey. If I concern myself with all the possible dangers in life, I will never experience the joy of living life. If I focus on all the dangers of this world potentially impacting having and raising children, I will never have children. If I focus on the embarrassment I might face in going out and playing golf for the first time, I will never pick up a club. If I am faced with questions about a job I am perusing and have insecurity about how I might be perceived, I will never jump in to learn.

Don’t get me wrong. Sharks in the ocean are dangerous. We need to be careful when we swim in the ocean, but being careful is different than not doing something because the danger stops us from living life.

On this journey, begin to figure out your passion while you are on this earth and take a dive. You never know whether that passion will cause you to fly with the best of them.