You know how in Disney movies the princess walks through beautiful Nature and the birds, butterflies and animals, small and large land on her body, sing and dance with her? I used to think that’s a far fetched fantasy, until I came to the Galapagos Islands.
As soon as I set foot here, a smile organically formed on my face. Even though it was very hot, I was still wearing winter clothes and the long line was hardly moving, I didn’t seem to mind. It was like being in love. I was walking on the beach at night, heard some music from a nearby bar, and started dancing barefoot on the sand under the stars. I AM in love. I had been dreaming about coming to the Galapagos ever since I heard about Darwin and Evolution. A landmark moment in my life when things started to make sense. In my mind’s eye, the Galapagos was this otherworldly place where strange creatures live in harmony with Nature. Paradise in a sense. I was super excited to experience this first hand, finally!
Sea lion colonies in the town center, marine iguanas strolling about as people make space for them, all sorts of birds hovering too close, almost creepy. I was sold! Never before had I experienced this abundance of wild life, out of captivity, cohabitating with humans. Something inside me felt relaxed and in awe. “We can all coexist without fear, control, greed and dominion?!? What a dream come true!”
Birds often come towards me, look me in the eyes, cross my path and go about their business. Lizards make a sudden tiny move, as if to make sure I see them, then stand their ground as I walk around them. Iguanas, sea lions, turtles and other animals, big and small, treat humans with curiosity, playfulness and often apathy.
I’m transported to a parallel universe where humans, animals, reptiles, insects and birds share the planet with respect for each other and all of life. There’s so much up-close-and-personal wild life around. I easily get lost watching the playful sea lions go about their life; sleeping in cute positions, nursing, hugging, playing, fighting, swimming, jumping…in and out of the ocean. Even insects are fascinating to watch.
People, in turn, are also relaxed and ‘tranquilo’. When I rented a bike, I asked for a lock and the clerk was surprised: “Why? You don’t need it here”. I often see motorbikes parked with keys in the ignition. Phones charging in public areas with no one in sight. Offices and businesses often have their doors open with no one inside. Addresses here sound like “Casa de <name>” (House of <name>). On Isabela Island, the municipality offers free dance classes in the park. Even at the airport, the officers at the security checkpoint were joking and laughing. I went through with my shoes on and full water bottles! A blast from the past!
These magical islands are almost 1000km (a little over 600 miles) away from other land masses. Only life forms that could swim, fly or otherwise hitch a ride on/with someone else made it here. Life evolved away from our human culture of fear and scarcity for thousands of years. They all lived happily ever before the mid to late 1500s, when a new creature arrived: Humans! While human activities severely affected Nature here, including the extinction of many species, the remaining ones are still, to a large degree, untainted. There is still a lot of inter-species trust and respect. With the current preservation efforts, hopefully it will remain so.
When the English scientist, Charles Darwin came here in the 1800s, he noticed that the beaks of finches look different on different islands. Upon further studies, he realized that their beaks adapted to the kind of nuts they eat. Whichever characteristic helped the bird become more efficient at cracking the local nuts, was propagated down to the next generations. Natural selection at work. A couple of decades later, he published his ground breaking book “On the Origin of Species” and forever changed how we believe life evolved.
Fear is also a learned behavior. The Galapagos seal was heavily hunted for its fur. Now, we hardly see any seals because they avoid humans like the plague. Whereas Sea lions, because they were never hunted, are like street dogs; roaming about freely among humans.
The Galapagos Islands are the living, breathing proof that we can, indeed, live in harmony with our Mother Nature. As the most dominant animal on Earth, we have the capacity to create Love, Life and Abundance for all. Instead of visiting the Galapagos, snapping pictures and feeling this bliss for a short time, how about if we re-create the spirit of the Galapagos in our own backyard? How can you choose differently to transform fear into love?
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Unconditional Love 