Living on the Gold Coast, or in Australia in general, I guess I have grown accustomed to the beauty this land possesses. I often take it for granted.
Today, I woke up and decided to explore the beautiful country I live in, and headed into the Gold Coast Hinterland to discover some waterfalls. I do this fairly often, but tend to visit similar spots or ones I am already familiar with. There was one in particular that I had heard of before, and how incredibly wonderful it is to experience – “Natural Bridge” – so I asked Siri for directions, and headed off … solo!
It took me 52 minutes, a quarter of a tank of fuel and far too much of my own terrible singing. But I arrived at the destination, locked my car and could instantly hear the waterfall in the near distance. Being a Saturday, there was some other families and adventurers heading towards the sound, so I decided that they probably (hopefully) knew what they were doing and I would follow. On the way there was a split track, and a little elderly lady breathlessly warned us of the crazy staircase down one way, so we took the other track. The walk was peaceful and quite short (only a few hundred metres, downhill too!). Birds, singing us their welcomes and bush turkeys that would occasionally sprint across the path. The lane eventually intertwined with an opening into the passageway of a cave ... a small glimpse of the beauty ahead was visible from the entrance, and the waterfall looked to be glowing a vibrant and brilliant blue!
Upon entering the cave, there were families getting photos in front of it, some people taking “happy selfies” with the waterfall and dodging the hurdles formed by camera and tripods was a task in itself! But the view was worth it.
Natural Bridge, a naturally-formed cave in the crest of a mountain, with a hole in the roof; which just so happens to have a creek of divinely clear water running directly to it. The water falls through the hole onto a large log that has been jammed between the roof's hole and the water's floor below; creating a guide for the water as it runs down and over it. It’s spectacular!
It sounds so simple, “water falling onto a log in a cave”, but the luminescent glow of the ambient light (naturally occurring, available light) softly seeping through the hole above and onto the falling water, creates a surreal aura; magic. Mother nature has created a perfectly formed scene, complete with downlights from the hole in the roof, filled with light from the cave opening and a the reflective light bouncing off the water.
I sat there and watched nature's show until I forgot the time. A few families and avid explorers had come and gone, and I decided to take the alternate route (up the stairs the lady was telling us about I assumed) back to my car. There were some picturesque spots I had driven past on the way to the Falls which I desperately wanted to stop by on the way home and take a quick photo of and absorb its essence also. There was some delightfully hidden lookouts that offered alternate perspectives of the waterfall, so I took advantage of these also. Dodged some more bush turkeys, and safely returned to my car.
Today I explored solo. I went out on my own, lost myself both physically and mentally, and completely loved it. I think it’s really important to be capable of being alone sometimes ... being able to entertain oneself and be unreliant upon others for your happiness. The quietness of your surroundings, can bring out a lot of inner noise; thoughts, feelings and emotions. And sometimes, this is necessary. It can be confusing, intimidating, overwhelming, exciting, intriguing and sometimes just plain weird. But these thoughts and feelings, help us to self-develop and accept. I believe these times are what give us perspective, help us to open our minds and provide us with knowledge of both ourselves and our surroundings on a level much deeper than that of one we experience whilst in the company of others. We notice more, feel more and generally, experience more. If you can’t remember the last time you were alone (or even if you can) I urge you to try spend a day or some time alone and see where your mind takes you. See if you notice things about your surroundings and own self that you never had before.. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
Love and light,
Sjana x