The sea and the sky

I am 27 years old and I first saw the sky, and what lies under the sea surface, a couple of years ago.
Do not get alarmed, fortunately I have no vision problems, neither I have been kept in a dark hideaway. Instead, picture myself living happily in the south of Spain, the summers of my childhood spent between the beach and the family cottage. The fact that I had seen the sky and the sea was as obvious to me as it is probably for you right now, but I was wrong.

All changed on August 27, 2012, as I immersed myself in the waters of the Golden Beach at Bartolome Island (Galapagos). The vivid memory of what I saw still leaves me breathless and sends shivers down my spine. In front of me I had the most beautiful spectacle that you can dream of, life in all shapes and colours: blue and gold snappers, surgeon fish with fluorescent tails, frightening morays, huge sea turtles, swimming iguanas and playful sea lions, to name a few. My mental image of the sea vanished then, to be replaced by the extraordinary vision of my surroundings. I realised that I been looking at a blurry photo in black and white and that, at that very moment, I saw the sea for the first time.

That night I went to sleep overjoyed, knowing that I could cross off one thing from my bucket list: witness something truly majestic. I could not suspect that four days later and 1.600 km east, during a night canoe trip in search of caimans in the Amazon jungle, I was about to get totally amazed for a second time. Tired of tracking the riverbanks in search for the reflective eyes of the caimans, I looked to the sky to relieve the tension accumulated in the neck… only it was not the sky, but a black vault of embossed stars by a gifted artisan, with the mad determination to work until filling up every corner of the universe canvas. I never knew how much time I passed under the hypnotic effect of such raw beauty, but I do remember to wake up from the trance understanding the fascination of ancient civilizations with the sky and the stars.

Addicted to the feeling of getting positively overwhelmed by something since that summer, I have realised that anytime and anyplace is right for it. Empty your mind of prejudices and busy thoughts and sharpen your senses, to recover the sense of wonder of your early years, and the next time that you leave the house, get ready to experience how life takes your breath away and puts a smile on your face when contemplating the___to be filled by you___ for the first time.