DEPLOYMENT #15

The Science of Awe - A Practical Guide

1.5hr South of Sydney

Cabin: Banjo

Field Scout: Declan Buswell

Equipment:
Sony A7III Lens: Zeiss FE 24-70mm f/4, Sony FE 35mm f/1.8,
Fuji XT-3 Lens: Fujinon XF 35mm f/1.4 R, Fujinon XF 23mm f/1.4 R Lens
DJI Mavic Air

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Awe-inspiring experiences, generally the by-product of perceiving vastness, have the power to shift our attention away from ourselves, make us feel part of something larger, make our worries wash away and make us feel more generous to others. It’s something that philosophers and poets have known for years, but for some reason, for most of us, we only really get it when we stare at a mountain or forest as the sun sets, casting it in a golden glow. But it’s not something that we usually go out searching for.…until now.

Welcome to Banjo.

You can’t get more inspired than staring at a waterfall…that really should’ve been the opening line, but hey, here we are. Sitting facing the forest and a giant, ancient waterfall, listening as the water cascades down rock older than we can imagine with nothing to consider but the slowly arcing birds and when your next coffee should be. Time simply ceases to exist, reminding us it’s something we’ve built and therefore something we can just as readily ignore…so we do for a while.

With the slowing down of time that these vast spaces allow us, we realise quickly what was in front of us all along. As Vonnegut puts in words far better than us: “One day you’ll look back on the little things and realise they were the big things.” We grind coffee by hand, stare at clouds for what’s probably hours and just listen…nothing else, just listen for a while. Everyone should have a chance to do that every so often. It reminds you that you don’t always have to be doing things, that the things you generally think you should do are actually the ones you don’t need to be doing.

Sitting watching the smoke slowly curl its way through the wind, totally complacent, not talking, just watching, it’s easy to understand why everyone’s starting to look at the outdoors now - it does make you feel better. Happier? Probably. Content? Yes. But that could also be the warmth from the 3rd Negroni we pour slowly but surely into our glasses.

Too often we get stuck in the guilty feeling that corporate life has bred into us, that idea that we should for some reason feel bad taking time off for ourself, for “no reason”. It’s spaces like this that make us realise we need to do this more often, and not just when they tell us we can, but when we want to, when we need to. We’ll be back again. Soon.

The end.

Photos by Declan Buswell @declanbuswell
Words by Cam Grant

If you’re looking for another dose of perspective book Dawn or Nicho.