Post 1: Raison D'etre

     Today this soon to be sixty-five year-old ordered an inflatable stand-up paddle board. 

     The Red Paddle Company twelve-footer has already gotten me through a hard winter of family illnesses, work disappointments, and friend losses. On many cold, dark days it was the image of riding that SUP down the wild Greenbrier River and carrying it back to the car on the River Trail that was my reason for continuing to be.

     Having a "raison d'etre" is important for everyone, but particularly so with aging. A little motivation to keep moving goes a long way to keeping a Medicare-ready, post-Covid body moving: More kneeling in morning yoga; Step squats with dumbbells; Daily walks to work and back with weighted messenger bag. Ten-thousand steps a day approximate the five miles between river put-ins and take-outs.

     Still, standing up on a narrow, four-inch thick board gliding down a swift mountain river is a daunting thought for a recovering aquaphobic. Perceived near drownings early in life chased me away from teen pool parties and beach trips. It took a post-college summer job in the Sonoran desert and a Red Cross swim lessons book to break the spell during work siestas, but dreams of drowning still rage at anxious times.

     I spent the winter obtaining paddling clothing, equipment, and shoes, each purchase edging me closer to a late spring launch. Suddenly it's the equinox, and the river, running clear and cold with snow melt from the higher ridges to the north, burbles "bon voyage!"