The wind is blowing.\u00a0 The spring run-off is high and the river is rushing.\u00a0 The afternoons are warming up.\u00a0 The sun comes up before five o\u2019clock a.m. and doesn\u2019t set \u2019til after nine in the evening.\u00a0 It\u2019s time to get back on the water.<\/p>\n
I\u2019ve been windsurfing for twenty-two years. It\u2019s the most challenging sport I\u2019ve ever
\nattempted.\u00a0 Every time I get out on the mighty Columbia River, I don\u2019t know what\u2019s going to happen.\u00a0 Windsurfing is like being in the center of a gyroscope: nothing is stable \u2014 the board, the mast, the boom, the sail all rotate.\u00a0 Every part of your body is engaged.\u00a0 Your mind must be completely focused; if your thoughts wander, you\u2019ll be in trouble.\u00a0 The exhilaration is addictive.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s just like being an actor.<\/p>\n
As I get ready for the new season of sailing, I am thinking how my three rules for windsurfing apply to the actors graduating in a few weeks with an M.F.A. in hand. If I were speaking at their commencement ceremony, this is what I would say.<\/p>\n
Rule #1:\u00a0 Stay in shape; stay sharp; keep learning.<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/strong>There\u2019s nothing more frustrating than getting on the water out of shape.\u00a0 It can take half of the summer to get up to speed.\u00a0 I work out the rest of the year so that when I\u2019m on the river in the spring, I have a chance.\u00a0 And it\u2019s still exhausting until the specific muscles I\u2019m using get organized.<\/p>\n It\u2019s so easy for an actor to let her skills subside between gigs.\u00a0 Don\u2019t.\u00a0 Do your voice work every day, sing, read plays, go to plays, rehearse Shakespeare pieces, stay physically fit, do readings. You want to be ready so that you waste no time when the big opportunity comes up.<\/p>\n Every sailor is a different age, different physical type, and has different capabilities.\u00a0 I\u2019d be discouraged if I compared myself to a twenty-two year old world-class athlete (many of whom also sail in the Columbia River Gorge). Instead, I\u2019m inspired by watching them sail; I don\u2019t worry that I’m not able to do what they do.\u00a0 And every summer, I challenge myself to try new techniques on the water: completing more jibes, approaching larger waves, riding bigger swell. My only competition is with myself.<\/p>\n It\u2019s so easy for an actor to be discouraged by the accomplishments of others, particularly if they are your classmates.\u00a0 Remember, you are who you are and your gifts are specific to you. Be honest with yourself.\u00a0 You are a combination of capabilities that no one else has, but you must know your strengths and develop those gifts.\u00a0 Let others\u2019 successes be an inspiration to be better at what you do.<\/p>\n You are graduating from a great school.\u00a0 You\u2019ve learned a lot.\u00a0 I\u2019m sure the last thing you are thinking about is learning something new.\u00a0 Well, OK.\u00a0 Take a break for a bit, but then take class.\u00a0 Push yourself beyond what you know.\u00a0 Take risks so that you can get to the next level of your craft.\u00a0 Take every opportunity you can to improve.<\/p>\n Rule #2: Bring your best self every day.<\/strong><\/p>\n The windsurfing mantra is \u201cattitude is everything.\u201d\u00a0 It\u2019s a difficult sport with a huge number of variables.\u00a0 Getting ready can seem like a series of chores: from watching the weather reports and choosing a sailing site, to deciding which boards to take and loading all the gear, to driving to the site and scoping out the wind and waves, to picking the right size sail and then rigging it, to slogging out to the wind line, hoping your wet suit is warm enough.<\/p>\n It\u2019s easy to be frustrated when you can\u2019t find a parking spot, or you\u2019ve rigged the wrong sail, or you didn\u2019t bring the right board, or the wind changes, or dies, or the water\u2019s cold, or you\u2019re tired, or, or, or\u2026\u00a0 It\u2019s essential to bring the right frame of mind to every moment of the whole experience.\u00a0 A positive mind creates a positive time both on and off the water.<\/p>\n And of course, this is the same for an actor.\u00a0 You can use any excuse to be less than who you are.\u00a0 You are working two jobs, your agent doesn\u2019t send you out, you can\u2019t afford new head shots.\u00a0 You know how to create a character in a play; use those same skills to create the you<\/em> you want to be. If you are one-hundred-and-ten percent present, you will never regret a moment of your life.\u00a0 You will have always brought your best.<\/p>\n Many days, I sail like a pro. I fly over the water at rocket speed, pushing my limits, delightfully balanced between sail and board. I\u2019ve also had days on the water where I\u2019m ready to give up. I\u2019ve cracked ribs, bruised muscles, torn my meniscus.\u00a0 I\u2019ve been so exhausted I could cry. I decided one day to stop beating myself up for what I didn\u2019t do and start celebrating what I\u2019ve accomplished.\u00a0 Just getting on the water is the accomplishment on those days. This attitude shift has completely changed my experience \u2014 I now look forward to facing the challenges.<\/p>\n The life of the actor can be filled with pitfalls, disappointments, and despair. You can choose to berate yourself for what you imagine to be failure.\u00a0 Or, at the end of the day, you can ask yourself, \u201cWhat did I do well today?\u201d\u00a0 You will always find something to celebrate.\u00a0 Soon you will notice that your accomplishments are piling up and there are more wins than losses.<\/p>\n Rule #3: See the big picture.<\/strong><\/p>\n The crests of the waves refract the sunlight into a thousand sparkles. The water wakes up every part of your body.\u00a0 The summer snow on Mt. Hood glistens against the cloudless sky.\u00a0 The bright sails of windsurfers in the distance look like butterfly wings.\u00a0 If I\u2019m just focused on my success or failure on the water, I will never see the beauty around me.<\/p>\n Being an actor can become an narrow obsession.\u00a0 You can lose sight of the world around you. Don\u2019t. See the L.A. hills turn green in the winter.\u00a0 Watch the flowering trees bloom in spring in Manhattan.\u00a0 Take a walk in the February slush along Lake Michigan.\u00a0 Enjoy a wonderful meal.\u00a0 Treasure your friends.\u00a0 Be in love.\u00a0 Remember that you have chosen this life and its tremendous creative rewards.<\/p>\n Adam Phillips wrote in Missing Out: In Praise of the Unlived Life<\/em>, \u201dOur lived lives might become a protracted mourning for, or an endless trauma about, the lives we were unable to live.\u201d\u00a0 Be the person who is living their life fully, learning, growing, celebrating, seeing.\u00a0 Remember, if you believe that you live in a state of grace, you will live in a state of grace.<\/p>\n And as they say out here in the Gorge, \u201cSee you on the water.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The wind is blowing.\u00a0 The spring run-off is high and the river is rushing.\u00a0 The afternoons are warming up.\u00a0 The sun comes up before five o\u2019clock a.m. and doesn\u2019t set \u2019til after nine in the evening.\u00a0 It\u2019s time to get back on the water. I\u2019ve been windsurfing for twenty-two years. It\u2019s the most challenging sport […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/nancyhoufek.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/262"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/nancyhoufek.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/nancyhoufek.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nancyhoufek.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nancyhoufek.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=262"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/nancyhoufek.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/262\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":265,"href":"http:\/\/nancyhoufek.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/262\/revisions\/265"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/nancyhoufek.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=262"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nancyhoufek.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=262"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nancyhoufek.com\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=262"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}