Listening to your inner surfer: Brothers pen insightful book inspired by riding big waves

By: GARY WARTH - Staff Writer | Saturday, April 29, 2006 9:06 PM PDT ∞

Michael and Milton Willis of North County have written ‘Discover the Greatness In You,’ drawn from lessons learned as longtime surfers. They’ll be signing copies at 7 p.m. Thursday at Barnes and Noble in Encinitas and 1 to 3 p.m. May 12 at Warwick’s in La Jolla.
Courtesy Photo

Surfing analogies roll in like a series of perfect waves in a new inspirational book by Milton and Michael Willis, who see their sport as a divine teacher of life's most important lessons.

"These philosophies are all from life," Michael said. "These lessons are learned from the ocean, from constant years of surfing, not only from ourselves but with the world's greatest surfers."

The Willis brothers, identical twins who turn 50 this year, are authors of "Discover the Greatness in You" ($10.95, Blue Mountain Arts), a 64-page collection of inspirational insights the brothers said they collected by conquering challenges in their own lives.

Those challenges include riding some of the biggest waves ever faced by a surfer. Growing up surfing on North County beaches, the brothers established the first surfing class for physical education in a United States public high school in 1972 and became pioneers in tow-surfing, where surfers are towed into breaking waves that they otherwise could not catch.

The brothers have surfed some of the largest waves on record and are among the few to twice surf in Hawaii during a Code Black, when beaches are closed to surfing.

Milton, a Solana Beach resident, said the achievements he and his brother have accomplished on the water inspired the book.

"Essentially, our words are meant to entertain and inspire and educate and inform many people who don't have perfect lives, who are in any pressure situation like a hospital, a jail, a negative relationship," Milton said, "people who don't have the perfect waves in front of them. This is meant to inspire them."

One inspirational passage in the book focuses on having a positive attitude.

"All successful achievement has come from a single thought: I think I can," the book reads. "In life, we help create our own triumphs and defeats, depending on how and what we think."

Milton wrote much of the book in longhand, and the brothers collaborated on the final text in front of a computer in the library at Earl Warren Junior High School in Solana Beach. Michael, a Del Mar resident, said the collaboration wasn't that much different from the way he works with his brother on other projects.

"A lot of times we collaborate in our conversations in life, such as tackling an activity like riding the world's largest wave," Michael said. "Through conversations and so forth, we collaborated. A lot of times, we'd write together, or sometimes I'd write and he'd rewrite."

The book is breezy but meaningful, sometimes with little text on the page and no perceivable order. The introduction challenges readers to open the book to any page for a positive message, and Michael goes one step further.

"Try this yourself," he said. "If you have something on your mind, put that on your mind and open the book to any page, and the book will speak to you personally and give you wise counseling that you can use."

The brothers find lessons in surfers who are experienced, novices who dare to try and even those who fool themselves into thinking they are trying.

"Experienced surfers have a term for those who appear to be trying a catch a wave but never do," the book reads. "They're called 'rubber arms.' Rubber arms are surfers who turn to catch a wave, making all the paddling movements, but never really go anywhere. Surfers who are rubber arms don't really want to drop in; the situation is much too intense. Many times, they experience some of the worst wipeouts. This is the price paid for not being fully committed and putting out a halfhearted effort."

Michael said when he was a child, a girl told him that she didn't like surfers because all they talked about was surfing. From then, he said he wanted his life to be about more than surfing, just as he wants his book to have wide appeal.

"Our book tries to go much broader and expand the experience of surfing," he said.

Contact staff writer Gary Warth at gwarth@nctimes.com or (760) 740-5410.

Related links:


Visit the Milton brothers' Web site at http://www.wbsurfing.com.

Milton and Michael Willis will discuss and sign copies of "Discover the Greatness in You" at 7 p.m. Thursday at Barnes and Noble, 1040 N. El Camino Real in Encinitas.

The brothers also are scheduled to appear 1 to 3 p.m. May 12 at Warwick's, 7812 Girard Ave., La Jolla, and at noon June 20, at Barnes & Noble, 5500 Grossmont Center Drive, Suite 223, in La Mesa.

First name only. Comments including last names, contact addresses, email addresses or phone numbers will be deleted. All comments are screened before they appear online, so please keep them brief. Comments reflect the views of those commenting and not necessarily those of the North County Times or its staff writers. Click here to view additional comment policies.

Name:

Email: (optional)

Comments:

Image Verification: