There is nothing like seeing the sun rise above the ocean; especially in New Zealand, and in summer. With streaks of pastel leaking across the sky, the reflection of the clouds and their marvelous colour on the water streaked sands, you could almost believe you were in either fairy tale or painting. Pinks giving way to glorious crimsons and reds, flecks of gold reach down to the shimmering blue of the ocean, the foam on the waves like frothy light frosting finishing off an already perfect look is pure paradise.

Even better is the sound of the waves in their roll and crash, hearing the thunder, watching the swells as they create lines of beauty. Some complete, while others slide down into the stillness and form again at another point. They look so calm, sound so calm, so small, when in reality they could topple you in a heartbeat, hidden rips and undercurrents pulling you back with them and sweeping you out into the beautiful blue deep.


Something about them transports you to another place, a realm of rejuvenation and healing energy for a tired soul that has been drifting with seemingly no direction, like one of the waves themselves, from place to place, touching shores and cultures, always coming and going and never staying, always changing.  Peace is found in the gentle wind breathing salt air as the ocean caresses your skin, tension slipping through the soles of your feet as you feel the sand sink beneath you with the pull of the tide.


Close your eyes and empty your mind of everything but the feeling, the sensations, and embrace the gentle quiet stirring inside, whispering of dreams and flickers of hope like the brightening of the sky above you. There is a desire to stay there, in that place, in that peace, a wish to be able to lock yourself inside a glass bubble in that ocean, on those sands, for a lifetime, where your soul is nothing but light, in tune with the universe and every vibration of love.


But nothing lasts forever. Not even the sunrise. The magic of that magic gives way to the bright light of day, blinding beams as you open your eyes to the ocean. The ocean does not change, the effervescent blue still real and perfect, a reminder that there is heaven in everything, perfection even when perfection seems to have passed. It enables hope to stay as you turn from the horizon and leave the ocean’s arms for the way beyond the sand.


Words: © 2018 Rosie Chee

Photographer: Rosie Chee