I PRETENDED TO READ
Writen by Dario Orrico
Photography:
Ana Laura Vargas
León Vargas
Dario Orrico
Brother asked sister as if to a stranger: “How’s your mom do-
ing?”, sister then replied as if to
a stranger: “she’s ok, how’s your mother?” He replied: “she’s ill, she recently had surgery” sister said:
“What a coincidence! mine too!
what hospital did she go to?”.
This wasn’t a place to be in a
hurry.
I used to surf when I was a boy. I wanted to be good, I wanted to spend the whole of my time on a wave.
I never really enjoyed myself.
I’ve always been very strict, I’ve always kept my eye on the price.
All lacking I replace with will.
I quit surfing.
I lost faith and quit everything, eventually.
That’s not what surfing is about
I surfed a lot on this trip. I was eager to re-engage with some-thing id lost. Something I never appreciated.
I was on a really small board. The kind of board you use if you know what you’re doing. I don’t.
But I do know to have no intention of riding waves.
I want to fight the tide and sit on my board.
Surfing is not ridding. Ridding the wave is a treat.
Surfing is like climbing, it’s physically exhausting and challenging. Surfing is like playing tag. You’re chasing something, like hunting. Whilst you’re also be-ing chased, like hunted. Nothing is killed if you succeed in your hunt and no harm is done if you’re caught. Exhaustion is counteracted by the refreshing water; the chal-lenge is made safe, as safe as
being tethered to something buoyant. Surfing is like summitting, it grants you a privileged un-obstructed view. A view that can only be had and felt when with-in nature.
A sight of na-ture. Surfing is like meditation, like sitting around a campfire. Both calm and aware of dan-ger.
Surfing is all of this. Not about ridding.
Like listen-ing to music, or dancing. There’s noth-ing to achieve. It’s the act itself that’s meaningful. We don’t listen impatiently until the song is over, we enjoy the moment as it is.
