Civilization. Fail.

My father was a sail boater. Most of the time we would putter around calm little inland lakes but every now and then he would take us out on the ocean. Most parents today would be appalled at the idea of taking a couple of 5 and 6 year old kids out on the ocean with nothing but a life jacket between them and drowning.
My Father lived for these moments. Once we got past the harbor and break water he would start to light up. His eyes would take on an unearthly glow as though there were a fire burning inside. The rougher the water got the hotter he would burn. He would whoop like an insane person every time we dropped off a big swell or hit a wave head on. It was in these moments that I began to see, at a very early age, the effects of the prison like confinement of life in the modern age and the freedom that was offered by embracing the more primal side of one's nature. Coming back, soaked in sea water and shivering from the cold he would get progressively more compacted the closer we got to the landing spot. As he climbed off the boat you could see the crushing weight of  civilized life resettling itself on his shoulders.
I have never forgotten that lesson.