Space travel in our own back yard
One of the most impactful experiences of my life was an hour long excursion with Spellbound tours to a lesser frequented labyrinth of the Waitomo caves to feast my eyes on glow worms. Prior to our trip to New Zealand, I had read about the beauty of these little creatures and been excited to experience them for myself. Like many experiences in life, nothing could have prepared me for what I encountered.
Caves have an oddly spiritual quality for me. They are mother nature’s monuments and cathedrals. I think it might be the mixture of the alien, with the transcendent, first contact right here on earth, in your own backyard. For those with curious minds it’s comforting to know that from the depths of the oceans, to the caves where humans seldom traverse, subsets of our world exists. Multiverses of creatures that live and die basking in their own beauty. The short time I was able to spend with these critters felt a lot like an alternate reality. The science behind the sum total of their existence makes me feel like there is a rhythm and rhyme to the universe we live in.
Hop was our local Spellbound tour guide. He plied us with science, indigenous culture, cookies, tea and having grown up in the region, some local history. Titiwai, the Maori term for glow worms, translates into ‘lights reflected in water’. It sounds infinitely more inspiring than ‘beautiful maggot’ or Arachnocampa luminosa. The Glow worms of New Zealand are a fungal gnat that produce an eerily stunning blue-green bioluminescence in the larvae stage. The life cycle of this unusual creature is simple but its production quality and theatrics are quite a show.
An adult fly lays eggs and the larvae hatch about three weeks later. A young larva grows from a few millimeters to 3–4 centimeters over six to nine months. The larvae dangles in a silk tube attracting its prey, mates and tourists like me. The beauty of Titiwai’s life cycle is most alluring when dormant, not as a fully formed adult. Its light beckons to you and I really did feel like a moth to a flame. It was my first experience being seduced by thousands(?) or tens of thousands of tiny little glowing sirens.
About a dozen of us happened to be on this particular excursion, from all points on the globe. We entered the cave after a short drive and some local history. Along the cave path I absorbed the chill of the air and the quiet drip of water through the earth’s crevices, watching the shadows dance across the stalactites and stalactites. We were fortunate enough to examine the remains of a Moa, a long time extinct flightless giant bird similar to an Emu. As we descended into the cave we got a teaser of the beautiful jewel like tendrils excreted by the glow worms. In a separate cave we descended to a raft, onto a cavernous river, blocked off at one end because of a waterfall that was too dangerous to cross. This is where I found my galaxy in a cave.
A couple of things really stick out for me and will forever hold a place in my mind and heart. The first was a few minutes of silence in utter darkness in a part of the cave that had no glowworms. Each of our small troop was silent as we spent minutes in the pitch black. I know it seems like a small thing but the cold air, the silence and the stillness of not being able to see your hand in front of your face gave me shivers up and down my spine. My sacral chakra felt like an open portal to all the energy of the place and it was breathtaking. It’s where I feel everything, the base of my spine.
The second experience was sitting with my family in the front row of a raft feasting on the glow worm stars above me. Typing this I can recall willing my brain and eyes to memorize every detail of the sight. I desperately wanted to fully absorb the moment, breathing in the synergistic communion. I wanted to imprint this moment on my brain and heart, holding my family, grateful for our blessings and good fortunes. Some people accumulate things, some people accumulate experiences. I tend towards the latter, but most of all I try and accumulate lessons. To feel it all in the present moment.
I want to recall that moment on grey lonely days when life seems a little to overwhelming and my fears of the future take more pressing need. It was a whole world unto itself. Without cell phones, war, corruption and human ignorance. It was the basis of life evolving as if our existence meant nothing to the universe. That life, beauty and art would always find a way to thrive. The glow worm caves of Waitomo will forever inspire reverence, child-like wonder and the eternal struggle for life from the minuscule to monumental. I felt small in this cave of wonders - in the most beautiful way.
Being able to experience the exquisite fragility and beauty of nature is a privilege that everyone should be exposed to. Whether it is a simple walk in the mountains through old growth forests or a fresh dip in the ocean or local lake, it is what we are missing as a people. Interestingly enough Titiwai, has cousins that can be found in Alabama in Dismal caves. If you are interested I would highly recommend something off the beaten path in a small group rather than a large tour operator for the silence and serenity. Spellbound Tours was well worth the experience they offered.
Shine little glow-worm, glimmer, glimmer
Shine little glow-worm, glimmer, glimmer
Lead us lest too far we wander
Love’s sweet voice is calling yonder
Shine little glow-worm, glimmer, glimmer
Hey, there don’t get dimmer, dimmer
Light the path below, above
And lead us on to love!
- The Glow-Worm, The Mills Brothers
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Go forth and Break bread: I was very fortunate to have a full house of family, with way too much food, love and laughter. I doubt they know how much their presence meant to me this Christmas. Go light on the sausage and heavy on the beans. This dip was a hit: Sausage and bean dip
My dream Soundtrack added a classic New year’s song: Jay-Z: The hustler. So perfect…I hope this New year proves to be the year people from all walks of life pivot towards humanism, integrity, an abiding love and respect for the planet that houses us for a short time, and a truly interconnected world.
