Five feet of water towered over me as the waves were coming in, one right after the other. They were not coming straight on, but rather, angling left. I signaled to my youngest son not to come out with his surfboard. Into the distance and over to the right, I can see those waves angling inward, as well. A tide coming to shore in a convergent path creates what's known as a Rip Current.
A rip current is a dangerous movement of water that is flowing powerfully away from the shore with the strength of massive amounts of water. Like the shape of the letter V, the waves are breaking toward the shore, and in the center in-between, even the strongest swimmer might fail to make headway.
I got caught in a strong rip current in 1997 at one of my favorite surf-spots called Tamarack Beach in Southern California. I only realized I was that far out because the waves behind me had suddenly become "rollers" - which is a wave at its swell before the break. I looked down at one point and saw the biggest sea turtle I have ever seen. If you can imagine all of my strenuous effort to swim back to shore was failing. I was panic stricken. I was exhausted, and fast.
Eventually, another surfer who saw me struggling told me to follow him, and we made it back safely.
Is there a collision? Are we colliding - even as we have the same hope in common? Trying for the same destination?
