Notes from The Pack
We believe that safaris have the potential to transform us. More than being just a break from the real world or a once-in-a-lifetime experience, the combination of vulnerability and newness can shift our perspective, but to be altered, we need to be present and aware of what this place offers us beyond the accommodation and service, food and wine. Our guest writer, Lin Cassidy, has captured what we invite every visitor to experience when they journey with us.
When we stop and breathe, we take the time to pause for a moment and notice what else is happening around us.
Yes, there is nothing more thrilling than seeing Africa’s iconic and fabled wildlife up close. When we see for the first time just how huge an elephant is, or watch the power ripple through a lion’s muscles when it is on a chase, or when our hearts can feel the vibrations from a galloping herd of buffalo across a floodplain – these moments can make us feel alive, vulnerable, brave and full of awe. Our trip to Africa can be a wild, exciting ride. It can be a once-in-a-lifetime adventure.
But when we pause, we give ourselves the opportunity to let the spirit of Africa enter our souls. If, sitting still, we take a moment to marvel at the miracle that puts us right here in this moment, we get to breathe in the essence of Africa.
Perhaps our eyes are pulled through the heat shimmer to a point beyond the horizon. Perhaps our gaze is drawn up into the wide blue expanse of sky. Did you ever see such a big sky? We can notice a solitary ant, diligently scouting for food. How many million other tiny creatures have passed us by unnoticed just in the last day? We can watch a feather drift inexorably to the ground. All lives are finite.
Perhaps our ears can start to hear the myriad of tiny sounds that make up the throbbing silence of a hot African afternoon. The pulsing, rhythmic coo of the Ring-necked Dove. The scratch of a tiny tail as a lizard scuttles to a better vantage point. The far-off but incessant trill of the Crested Barbet. Perhaps even a single, lonely cry of the African Fish Eagle.
Perhaps we can feel that afternoon heat on our skin. Or maybe a gentle breeze lifts our hair or touches our face. Later we surrender to the cool relief of the darkening evening. In the mornings, we might perceive the contrast between the biting cold of the dawn wind, and the cosiness of our warm clothing.
Perhaps our nostrils are filled with the warm scent of dry savanna grass, or the heady night perfume of wild jasmine. Perhaps, out on a game drive. we can smell the strong, earthy, pungency of fresh dung. And sometimes these smells bring the moment more alive than do the sights and sounds alone.
When we stop and breathe, we give a chance for all our senses to be filled. We can use these awarenesses to enrich our experience. Each extra detail we notice fills in the context of our trip and embeds our memories more deeply. We get to ‘feel’ Africa. We learn that the quietness of a hot African afternoon is not an emptiness; it is the stillness of resting. There is a sense of watchful waiting and expectancy. With each slow breath, sense of place becomes richer and fuller. Pausing reinforces our feelings of awe and wonder. Our full attention allows us to collect and bring home more meaning.
When we stop and breathe, we can see beyond the busy-ness of our daily lives. Taking a quiet moment gives us an opportunity to consciously consider just how incredible our planet is. The same planet that houses a busy hometown or city with its own trees and seasons, also houses our big skies, open plains, rugged acacias and long dry winter. When we return home, we can close our eyes, and recall the sounds, the smells and the feel of the African air, and so relive for a moment our time in the wild.
For a chance to stop and breathe, reach out to travel@thepack.africa or visit our camps to learn more.
Lin Cassidy is a Botswana citizen living in Maun. While much of her career has focused on conservation and development, she enjoys sharing her love for nature through words and art.