dancingthroughchaos

‘The mountains are calling and I must go’ – John Muir (1838-1914) naturalist and environmentalist

This past week or so has seen us travelling to the Free State province of South Africa to visit friends who used to live in Cape Town.  Flying into Bloemfontein we had a bird’s eye view of the vast spaces given over to farming up here.  It’s an area historically occupied by the Boers, or Dutch farmers, who trekked here between1835-1846 looking for a land where they could be free and independent.

The broad, open plains and magnificent mountains, include the mighty Drakensberg range which stretches for over 1,000 km into Kwa Zulu Natal and Lesotho.  Thanks to my recovering broken ankle, hiking wasn’t an option, but over the weekend we took a drive through the Golden Gate Highlands National Park where we admired the jaw-dropping scenery. 

Photos don’t really do it justice, but you can get a sense of the scale of these extraordinary rock formations.  Enjoy my gallery!

We saw zebra, bontebok and wildebeest grazing the rich grasslands and listened to the birdsong as we soaked in the peace and breathed in the good fresh air.

In winter there is ice and snow up here and, as it melts, the water forms powerful rivers rushing down the mountains into dams.  It was fascinating to stand and note the deep scars on the landscape where seasonal rivers have carved paths and scoured the rocks over many years, leaving deep gorges.

Those scars contribute to the beauty of the place.  To stand surrounded by such magnificence is to be reminded both how small we are in the scale of things and how feeble any man-made efforts to reproduce such things are. 

It was also a reminder to me that we each carry our own scars from our various journeys through life.  Not one of us will get through unscathed.  Some scars are obvious: the result of accidents or surgery; others remain hidden in our hearts and minds.  Rather than detract from the beauty of life, they can actually contribute to it reminding us of events both good and bad.  They are evidence that we are still standing, still fighting, still breathing and still pressing on.

A phrase I often use in public speaking is one from yesteryear: ‘Never trust a soldier without scars.’ In other words, it’s the endurance through the trials of life that bring authentic experience and wisdom to a situation.  Those without scars probably haven’t travelled far yet.

I know we usually try to hide our scars and at a time in my life when my body seems to have taken on a will of its own, the Drakensberg remind me that they are hard won trophies. There is no shame in them if we can keep them clean. Not open, festering, infected wounds that damage those around us, but healed and healthy reminders of how we have engaged with the adventure of life and not given up.