…Standin’ on the edge of something much too deep

It’s funny how we feel so much but we cannot say a word…

I Will Remember You, Sarah McLachlan

Once I stood on the edge of the Grand Canyon and was surprised at how unimpressed I was with the vista. I find that large expanses, as beautiful and magnificent as they are, don’t capture my imagination as much as let’s say an insect on a flower does. I am not sure why that is but I don’t think it matters much. Yesterday I did stand upon Signal Hill in St. John’s Newfoundland and I did feel awed. The wind blew and the day was gorgeous, warm but not too hot. The sky was clear.

Looking straight ahead miles of water stretched out before me. The ocean. The Atlantic Ocean. It looks tiny and large all at once, the perspective playing games with the mind. I had to drive along the port to get to the hill and there were huge ships docked that made me and my sister’s pickup truck seem puny.

I watched from above as this large ship left the harbour. It clicked. The enormity of the ocean. Then the realization that thousands of miles of water lay between me and another continent.

Is it an understanding or is it a mood that drives that sense of awe? Perhaps it’s both. It was lovely to be there all the same and stare across the ocean.