A 'paddle out' for Simon.....

This isn't the post that I had planned for today but yesterday was the fourth anniversary of the tragic passing of a lovely young man, the son of friends and a schoolmate of my own son. It was incredibly difficult to write this post, how do you even begin to understand how things like this can happen and the pain parents feel. I wanted to do it (with the ok from Simon's Dad) as a tribute to a fine young man, well loved and missed in the body boarding and music scene here in Perth. I'm sure that he would have been there in spirit on the chilly day that his family and mates gathered on the beach to give him the traditional surfers send off called a 'paddle out'. Above, Simon's sister, brother, girlfriend and close friend prepare to go out into the heavy swell each carrying a flower which they will, along with the ashes, release into the ocean that he loved so much. After this private moment many surfing mates paddle out to join them, forming a circle of boards they cheer and slap the water, the traditional sign of respect, while family and non surfing friends watch this very moving ceremony from the shore. It's extremely hard to understand why things like this happen, I'm sure there must be a plan..a bigger picture, it's just not always easy to comprehend what it is.   R.I.P Simon Lee.