I just returned from a trip to northern Sweden to see the Aurora Borealis. I was not disappointed. We were at a National Park called Abisko, 120 miles north of the Arctic Circle. The landscape was stark and severe but beautiful. The temperatures ranged from a high of 21 degrees to a low of -16 degrees. Below is a photo of what it looked like.
A landscape like this makes you feel small and insignificant. Couple that with the remarkable display of “lights” we saw and you end up realizing you are small and insignificant. I believe this is what is called being in a state of awe. Being in awe places you firmly in a speechless world where words just don’t work, where you realize they are really not what is needed but only to be present and let the moments wash over you. It inspires, it astounds, it gives comfort and perspective. And in this location it was supremely peaceful.
And the most surprising aspect of the experience is that it made me feel closer to humanity, not isolated and separated even though I was miles from most of mankind. I thought about everyone who was seeing these lights at the same time I was, about those who came before (both the ancient ones and the prior visitors to this area) who were astounded and mystified and left in a state of wonder at the dancing lights above them. In a way that is hard to explain I felt connected to them all, my fellow seekers and those touched by the marvel that is the Northern Lights.
And while this might not make sense (and it certainly doesn’t to me) I felt a desire to cultivate compassion and caring for those around me. Perhaps it was the spiritual aspect of seeing such a rare and unique thing, something imbued with the power to draw me from my comfy home in a temperate climate to the arctic where the cold was by far the most extreme I have ever experienced, but I have returned from my trip changed (and with all my fingers and toes). And of course inspired!
