This past weekend we took a group
trip, almost a last hurrah, out to Plettenburg Bay for a weekend of different
activities. Bungee jumping was one of
the most serene experiences I’ve ever felt.
I had absolutely no fear when I stepped to that ledge and leapt off, I
felt like I was in good hands the entire time.
I don’t know if it was this trip that changed me, or if I was just
feeling particularly brave that day, but it felt a little strange to not have
any reservations about the jump. This
was, after all, the world’s highest commercial bungee jump, and it was daunting
to look down below from the bridge to the jump spot. But it was amazing nonetheless and I am so
grateful that I completed it; it’s something I’m sure I’ll remember for a long
time.
The other thing that really stuck
out about the trip, and this may seem cheesy, was when we visited the caves and
were able to do a little spelunking. The
first thing we came upon was this gigantic cavern inside. It must have been at least 20 feet high and
stretched out about 200 yards until the next giant area. The guide told us the first person to make
his way into the cave had this little oil lamp, a replica of which was off in
the corner of the cave. The guide turned
off all of the lights to show what it would have been like for the farmer that first
time and it was pitch black, save for that tiny oil lamp. It struck me as amazing that the first person
in that cave would have been completely unaware how vast and beautiful the cave
was, and for whatever reason, it reminded me of this quote from the TV show Louie.
The show surrounds a comedian as he goes about his life, but there was
one scene where he’s driving and his daughter is in the back complaining about
how bored she is, and is growing frustrated that her father is ignoring her,
she eventually asks, “Why aren’t you listening to me?” and he replies, “’I’m bored’ is a useless thing to say. You live in a great, big, vast, world that
you’ve seen none percent of. Even the
inside of your own mind is endless. It goes on forever inwardly. Do you
understand? Being the fact that you’re alive is amazing, you don’t get to be
bored.” Somehow, this oil lamp and this quote connected me to this idea
that I feel that I have experienced “none percent” of this big, beautiful
universe, and my experiences to date are similar to that of the farmer entering
the cave for the first time with his tiny oil lamp. But if I continue to keep learning and
experiencing, then hopefully one day, I’ll be able to see a little more of the
cave than I did before, and it gave me comfort knowing that someday together we
can turn on the lights and explore this massive cave that we call home.
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| Erica, JR, Patrick & Allie at the caves |
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