Uitwaaien²

This morning, we ventured out to Croton Landing after a day and night’s rain and wind storm. It was cloudy, with the sun peeking out once in a while through multiple layers of grey clouds. There were white clouds, too, floating in the two-toned blue sky, the deep blue overhead, and baby blue near the horizon. The normally calm Hudson River had turned into a sea of choppy brown water full of whitecaps.

Courtesy of Paul Titangos Photography  

There were fewer people walking along the path. However the low number was immediately compensated by ready windsurfers. Before long, one surfer was joined by three more. The especially strong wind, or Uitwaaien² (Uitwaaine squared) as Paul puts it, has its unique functionality: it provides us with both land and water activities.

We experienced the walk in the wind in two entirely different ways. When against the wind, we needed to brace the resistance with all our might. It swept away and scrubbed clean warmth as well as cobwebs from body and soul. It was kind of a refreshing feeling. When with the wind, we needed also to heed its rhythm, or it would brush us off the path easily. A realization dawned on me that it was just like a re-enactment of life. When torrents of change come, following blindly with the trend might not be adequate and secure. Resistance can be also richly rewarded. That’s the beauty of Uitwaaien².