Surfers Funeral

One of the hardest parts of becoming a surfing senior citizen, or as is more often used as a more apt description within the surf community, a geezer, is that more and more people you know keep passing away. It gets to be a drag getting the news that somebody that you know, who more often than not is even younger than you has moved on to the big perfect wave in the sky. Or perhaps the big closed out shore break with the nasty rocks and boiling water with biting sharks down below.

There is a custom within the surfing world that when a member of the surf community dies all his friends throw him, or her, a “paddle out.” A paddle out is sort of like a surfers version of a funeral. Everyone paddles out beyond the persons favorite local surf break and arranges himself or herself in a circle.

Many time leis or flowers are tossed into the middle of the circle. Then each person in the circle says something about the person who has died and a few prayers are said and everone paddles in and heads to the party, which is sort of a surfer’s version of a wake. In cases where the deceased has been cremated it is the custom to spread the ashes in the circle as the prayers are said.

Normally these paddle out sessions are pretty sad and sentimental and are much like a normal funeral except they are held in the ocean and on surfboards. Nonetheless the vibe is about the same. Solemn and reverent and all that. Occasionally somebody will say something funny, like at a funeral, but it is always in good taste and done with love and honor for the deceased surfer. Hardly ever do these surf ceremonies get away from normal custom. Hardly ever. Read more about it at www.surfersvillage.com .

This article has been republished with the kind permission of http://www.corkycarroll.com/