In the climactic scene of the Secret Life of Walter Mitty, Walter (Ben Stiller) is sitting with renowned photographer Sean O’Connell (Sean Penn) on a Himalayan peak, as he waits for the elusive snow leopard to appear. Finally, the creature silently steps out from its den and Sean motions for Walter to look through the lens and experience this priceless sight.
And then they just sit there.
After a few moments Walter whispers, “Aren’t you going to take the picture?” Sean’s response resonated with me. He whispered back that in moments like this, that are so special and unique and breath-taking, he wants to simply soak in the amazing gift, without the camera getting in the way.
Yes, pictures are wonderful. Yes, I take pictures. Yes, this is a once-in-a-lifetime experience that I want to remember through pictures. However, my attention can get so snagged on getting the light right or the caption I’ll put on this for Instagram, that I fail to experience the moment in the moment, forgoing the real moment for a camera interpretation experienced later on.
This is why I have decided to take word pictures. To sit in a moment and soak in every sensory experience I can. That way, when I look back on this whirl-wind of a year I will have genuine, vivid, real-life memories, not simply flimsy film versions. (Caveat: I will still take actual pictures, don’t worry).
So without further ado, here are a few word pictures from my month in South Africa.
Lying face up, arms out, on old wooden bleachers. The sky is so bright blue that one eye must stay half squinted. The clouds are meandering across their painted backdrop without a care in the world. I feel the breeze and know I am loved.
Sunday night, sitting in a stiff wooden pew watching a girl, maybe 7 years old, dancing along with 25 other around her age to “Jesus You’re My Everything”. She stares intently at her dance teacher, who is going through the moves, because she can’t quite seem to remember them. What she doesn’t forget, however, is all the words and as she mouths “Jesus you’re my everything” my heart melts at the sight of her profound 7-year-old devotion.
Sitting in a cushy bus seat, simply awe-struck at the scene before my eyes. The South African landscape flows by, a stunning canvas filed with towering mountains and billowing clouds, all of it set ablaze in fiery hues of pink, orange, yellow. Yes, God made this incredible scene and calls it good, but He doesn’t long for intimacy with the mountains. He isn’t jealous for the clouds. I am His chief creation. I am the Beloved. As are you.
Sitting on a log that’s supposed to pass as a see-saw, with toddlers piled on both sides (they couldn’t quite seem to grasp the concept). My legs, though severely bent, gently move the contraption up and down and up and down, until kids tumble to the ground. Pure joy-filled laughter erupts, as though this was not a mere see-saw, but Disney’s fines, magic creating, joy-ride. Their faces, with smiles so big their faces could very likely split, remind me that their joy is not self-made but straight from their Daddy. And He offers it to me, too.
Crammed in the middle seat of a Land Rover, staring wide-eyed out the window at the scene before me. Elephants, everywhere. We found the watering hole at the game park and it’s like elephant grocery store at 5 pm. Mamas with their kids, dads roaming around the edges. It is surreal to see them interacting, talking to each other, playing, spraying water, running around. These are real elephants. And they are close enough to graze the car I’m in. What is this life??
