May 6, 2024 | Written by Madisyn Welborn
Meggie Phelan
“I had this, this feeling that the ocean, I had a strong connection to the ocean, and I had always felt that my entire life.”
I’ve found that the documentation of people you know feels so drastically different than meeting and photographing those you’re less familiar with. Plenty of conversations between Meggie and I as friend’s had occurred before I ever considered photographing her for what has now become Saltwater Soul. Consequently, I chose to speak with Meggie more formally for the context of the work - these are some of the highlights from what she shared with me in that exchange.
“Surfing is just like a dance with the waves. And it guides you - it leads you into an experience, and being able to be pushed on a wave is just, it's an experience, you can't compare to anything else. Because you're one with nature in that moment, and I'm thankful for that experience….”
“ I think the most welcoming place I've surfed was Sayulita, Mexico, and the locals that were in the water were the sweetest…. They would give waves to other people and encourage other people, and that was just such a welcoming experience - especially in a country that's not my native language and a community that I've never experienced.”
“....an experience with nature, and less as a sport - and less as something to achieve, and more something to experience and to enjoy. Because at the end of the day, we're dancing with waves, we're with nature, where Mother Nature is guiding what we're doing. .... That's how surf culture came to be experiencing these waves and creating these surfboards so that we can ride them and experience what it's like to dance with Mother Nature.”