Twice a week for more than 10 years I have had the privilege of teaching surf PE at The Grauer School. This is a welcome interruption to a day that is usually filled with interviews and press releases and other mundane activities that tax the brain and weaken the body — not all of the body, really, my fingers are in really good shape from banging out 23 words per minute.

The surfers in my classes are young, between the ages of 13 and 15. They are energetic, smart and computer savvy, but leave electronic gadgets behind with the shore as they paddle into the very real world where no amount of button-pressing can help them. Most of them are beginners and, therefore, timid about waves over shoulder high, hoping for small waves that don’t threaten to break them in two. The most fervent among them, Luke Ashwerth, is also the best of the boys in the group. He paddled out on the biggest day of the year at Cardiff Reef, where he sat in the valley of the shadow, hoping beyond hope that a Wal-Mart-sized chunk of water (parking lot and all) wouldn’t land on him.

But surfing, to me at least, has never been about who is the best (that’s why I don’t attend many surfing contests) but it is about a connection with life. And while each of my students has made progress in the art of riding waves, their greatest advancements are in finding a deep and lasting understanding of the ocean. None of them are Kelly Slater, yet each contributes something unique and valuable to the lineup.

I can only teach them how to stand on a surfboard and do a basic turn, but as with each of us, they must find their own way in the ocean, taking on their own challenges in their own ways, at their own pace. Where for one, riding a three-foot wave is a major feat; the next one might have trouble keeping speed in smaller surf. And that is the beauty of surfing — the ocean takes us as we are, offering unlimited challenge for the small-wave surfer and those who long to track down mega swells fresh out of the Aleutian gate.

In the case of my class, abilities are about equally distributed: Nick has a passion, tenacity and focus that will pay off as he gains more water time.

Dannie (Danielle), the only girl in the class, proves the point that “Blue Crush” attempted — girls can surf. Zak is determined, and having recently caught his best waves ever, he is hooked for life.

Kyle is the catalyst for the group, first in and last out, even without a wetsuit. Michael is courageous, incrementally conquering his fear as he pushes out farther and farther.

Ancient Hawaiians called surfing He’e Nalu, a study of the wave. The best I can do for my class is introduce students to an ever-changing liquid classroom. The hope is that each of them will take this education further and continue learning about the mysteries of waves throughout their lifetimes, never graduating, but retaining a sense of wonder and adventure throughout their lives.