The Galapagos left a lingering impact on how I see the world since I visited several weeks ago. It is a reminder how, in William Wordsworth’s poem “Tintern Abbey”, nature is a force we can leverage as “our nurse, our guide”. Everywhere in the Galapagos you are surrounded by life forms that continue to evolve and adapt to their environments to survive and thrive. I found myself immersed in the experience. My full attention was captured in awe of it, from swimming with sharks to carefully navigating the rocky terrain to avoid stepping on land iguanas and sea lions basking in the sun.
Life on the Galapagos is a stark reminder of how if we don’t take ownership of our lives, it will be controlled by forces outside ourselves and serve some agency and purpose other than our own. To take back the agency of our own lives requires investment and energy in how we choose to be and steer it. As I went about our daily excursions I reflected on what I could learn from my observations and experiences and apply it to transform my own life.
I returned home with valuable life lessons on how to thrive even when the world seems against you and a thirst for more adventurous travel to come.
Be Courageous
I swam with sharks, sea turtles, sea lions, penguins and rainbow-colored fish in many shapes and forms. I swam my way through and with them gently and slowly. Yes, I swam with sharks despite the night before a shiver of sharks congregated behind our boat bumping their jaws and snapping their teeth at us. When I approached them I kept confident, calm and respected their space. I felt tickled with excitement inside, along with a bit of fear, yet outside I kept my faculties intact as I swam along and followed their white tips into the ocean depths. It was glorious.
Our fear sometimes gets in our way and blocks us from experiencing the wonder of life. I knew if I breathed through it, observed my surroundings and moved slowly it was all going to be ok.
Be Curious
Listen and observe with an open mind. I embraced each day with curiosity and excitement for what I was going to see and learn. I left the detailed itinerary back in my cabin and followed our naturalist guide. We discovered marine iguanas camouflaged among the rocks adapted from land iguanas and how finches beaks keep growing to dig deeper and forage for food. Yet, there is so much we don’t know.
Tortoises may look alike, but recently we discovered there are 13 living species of Galapagos Giant Tortoises today—all uniquely adapted to their specific environments — and each variety tells a tale of survival and adaptation. This provides valuable insights into natural selection. Sometimes, we simply can’t get the answers through direct observation, and we must accept that we cannot yet know those answers. It takes patience and insight, an open mind and the willingness to explore, to discover even the simplest facts of life.
Let Go
History has shown how we humans cling to our beliefs even in the face of the strongly-supported scientific theory that contradicts these. We may attack anyone who seeks to debunk us even if it is for our own good. History also teaches us that we can get comfortable with other ideas if we are willing to loosen our grip on our beliefs, be curious and open to discovery.
Embracing who you are means letting go of who you’re not. I’m still working on that and recognizing when I get stuck in my beliefs and it is an ongoing growth journey. I intentionally seek out new things that make me feel uncomfortable. I go to places where I push myself to reach new heights and learn something that allows me to see things differently and shift my perspective. I seek out the windows of wonder and go to where I’m puzzled, intrigued, challenged and inspired all at once. I hike among the wildlife. I swim into the depths of the ocean marveled by the kaleidoscope of colors. I set aside my piles of vacation books and go to where I find gatherings of fellow travelers to learn about them and share the journey.
We choose how we direct our lives and if we want to choose a different direction we need to open a door or in this case just dive in.
Adapt or Die
The first day staring out from the deck I noticed Magnificent Frigate birds gliding overhead. The bright red throats slightly deflated as they fly represent males who failed to find a mate. The Frigate inflates its red throat and perches itself on a branch of a tree to display it for days hoping to attract a female. It if fails it flies off for food and will reset and try again in a week during mating season. The Blue-Footed Boobies adapted to fold their wings back to plunge into the water for food and whistles when it finds fish to alert others. Their feet are baby blue from the nutrients in its diet. In the Galapagos all around you see signs of how wildlife adapts to the environmental challenges and how it requires cooperation and help from others.
Insights From My Experience
On the last day I observed these two land iguanas having a stare down contest to claim territory. I stayed and watched fascinated as they wobbled their heads, thrashed their tails and hissed at each other. They both stayed rooted in their spot and neither appeared to plan to move any time soon. Our guide shared, eventually one would let go to seek out food. This left a lasting impact on me and I can’t seem to shake it. The lesson as I reflect on my life is where do I hold on so tightly, where do I need to drop the rope, adapt and accept what is. I will cherish what I have learned and embrace nature as my guide to accept what is, be in wonder and awe of life and adapt accordingly.
If we really want to live, We’d better start at once to try; If we don’t, it doesn’t matter, but we’d better start to die.
-W.H.Auden
