Disappointing
The Aurora Borealis is mesmerizing. The way the sky writhes with light, shimmering with greens and yellows. Other times sending a flash of red or blue for just a moment and then gone. I grew up with the northern lights. They often appeared in the middle of the night on the coldest nights of the year. Occasionally the aurora would appear in the summer months after a thunderstorm. Always a surprise, ever a wonder.
When I moved to New York, I have lost the wonder of the night sky. We have street lights and billboards selling stuff. The dome of the sky reflects the glare of the city hiding the stars, the falling stars, and the aurora.
We recently traveled to Iceland. The goal was to see the lights, no, not street lights, but the northern lights. We expected 4 hours of daylight, with a cold wind. We knew that we might see snow and dark days. Not to mention darker nights. We went hoping to see the wonder I grew up living so many years ago. We went out on a bus to one of the national parks. A hot-chocolate truck warmed us, and six buses parked on the roads. Lights were out. We waited. Back into the tour bus to warm up and then out again, hoping to see the dancing aurora.
Finally, our tour took us back to Reykjavik. The aurora hide from us. Disappointing. So we planned to go the next night. Clouds rolled covering the sky. We stayed in the city, found a Christmas platter and were amazed at the food. Yet we did not see the aurora.
Disappointing. We had built expectations and hoped that we would see the night sky filled with wonder and not street lights. We had a plan, almost a bucket list, one more thing that we could like again.
Expectations should never be limited to one thing. Wonder should open us to possibilities, like the water running warm at the Harpa (Concert Hall). I still want to see the aurora. But we could see the volcanoes that surround the island. The Icelandic Horse (no not ponies) playing in fields throughout surprising and challenging our expectations of the people and the animals in this cold place.
The geysers, Golden Falls, and the tectonic plates drew us out into the roads seeing the island changing as we walked. It reminded me of Yellowstone National Park but drew our eyes into water that heats homes, not just blasting into the sky.
The Hallgrimskirkja, more than 40 years in the building, towered over Reykjavik, visible throughout the city, proclaiming faith and hope. The pews draw your eyes to the organ. A simple shift changes and calls your heart to the font and the table.
One disappointment, and yet the visit to Iceland, was filled with wonder, joy, and yes expectations. Locked in the frustration of not seeing the aurora could well have ruined our travel. The wonder instead invites us to return another time.
We often build expectations. More often, we lose sight of the joy surrounding us because of our plans. This journey reminded me to feel the wonder. To see what might be disappointing and yet, be surprised with the all that surrounds us drawing into the travel of life, yes, calls us to journey well.
Journey
