Audrey in Wonderland

“Physically confronted with what dwarfs us, we are forced to reverse our normal perception, in which we are the center and measure of everything.” 
– Robert Greene

In a previous post about my latest trip, I mentioned how much I loved Wadi Rum. Out of all the amazing places we visited in Jordan, this one stuck out for me and I started wondering why.

Half-jockingly, I assumed it was because there were not many people around to interact with and that feeling of un-crowdedness liberated my soul and made me experience true freedom. And it certainly played a part. But there is another reason why this experience felt so transformative.

Standing in Wadi Rum was like taking a slurp out of Alice’s “drink me” bottle. Suddenly, I shrank to my actual size in the universe : a peanut, a drop in the water, a speck… something quite insignificant.

Confronting myself with the simple reality that I’m plainly part of something much bigger was truly liberating. Like a weight lifted off my shoulders. An urge to let go and simply be. Imagine my over-achiever, go-getter, action-oriented self facing this halt and not even realizing it for weeks.

While I was there, I kept saying how much I would like to come back and spend more time in the bedouin camp. I was imagining a co-working situation : bringing a bunch of location independant people, setting us up with some WiFi and letting the quietness inspire and foster great work.

Now that I’m thinking this through, while it would be an exceptional environment to do amazing work, this place would better serve people by allowing them to unplug, lift their head off their screen and look at the starry skies, the red sand for miles and shear immensity.

Before I left Jordan, I bought myself a golden necklace with a string of small shiny stars. It immediately reminded me of what I was witnessing after sunset : the immensity of the desert all around and the immensity of the celestial dome all above.

And, in the middle of all that, little me, remembering who I am.

Photo credit : Dustin Main