Exploring the shallow pools for deep insight on Africa’s southern shore

The southernmost shores of Africa are a great place to chill out and enjoy being in nature. Today’s exploration down by the sea was refreshing and produced some insights not normally available on days when the attention is focused outward or into the future. As you can see from this collection of photos, the focus is more close up and intimate with the rock pools and terrain along these vast shores.

Rich colors and shapes making a full picture

Time as Blake saw it
It was possible to spend all the time I desired simply focusing on the little intricacies of marine life in a small pool, much like that great poet William Blake who saw the universe in a grain of sand and eternity in an hour, as his famous poem describes. This was a chance to set aside the outside world for a moment and simply be here now.

Back in another world view from an ancient past flung forward into tomorrow in a pool

A meditation space that leaves the woes of the world behind
With this remote shore being so absorbing, filled with its rich tapestry of land and seascapes, I almost forgot the woes of the planet, the concerns of life and the struggle for existence as I immersed myself in the pools. I was able to just admire the beauty of nature in one small fraction of it, via the individual rock pools.

Sea urchins and life hidden in plain sight through the veil

Holograms of life
Each pool felt like a fractal or hologram, where the whole was still visible in each small part. It looked like the entire cosmos was pictured in miniature when I gazed intently at the vivid patterns, reflections and life forms in one little rock pool after the other. I was able to see the pool as a mirror upon which I could reflect my own wandering mind.

A rich tapestry of life splashed across the rocky landscape

The remote Cape shores as a hideaway
In other words this region of the Cape coast, with so few people around, is an ideal place for a peaceful and meditative or laid back holiday, far from the rest of civilization. You could hide out here and feel like you’re in a perfect environment where you’re missing nothing. After all, the internet connects us all anyway, so you may as well be here at the beach in the sun as a lifestyle choice, while simultaneously thriving online.

On the edge of the African continent as it slopes down to meet the Indian ocean

Through the looking glass
From the screen to the pool, I was able to divert my attention to the glassy sheen of nature which each water-filled pool provided. The water was so crystal clear and translucent that I could see all the details of the marine world underneath. Water is life, even if salty, for these sea creatures. The shore around me was alive with organisms in a healthy ecosystem.

Remote shores only seem by a handful of people a year, unchanged for millennia

Your window to the sea shore
For those who live far from the sea or seldom visit it, these photos are here for you to get a glimpse of it close-up. It can be an ever constant yet also ever changing environment. It’s so fluid and paradoxical. I see it most days of my life and yet will never cease to appreciate it or grow tired of hanging out on its shores. It’s just so refreshing, as you can imagine. If you have lived near the sea you will perhaps agree.

Getting as close up as possible to see the details

The dark side and the light make the whole
And the shore has different faces. Instead of the usual long white sandy beaches and rolling blue waves, today I wanted to show you a more exotically colored shoreline rich with life and diversity. You could even eat these sea snails if you were desperate to survive, apparently. So the environment here is very life supporting.

It looks like another world from this perspective

Alice in Wonderland
Returning to this childlike state of being able to find amusement in the simple beauty of nature, and to immerse myself in it without time restraint, has been very healing for me. We should all be able to give ourselves an hour or two daily for this kind of time out, so to speak. Added to this break from all the screens, we can perhaps include the daily walkabout to keep fit, and in this way we create a balanced lifestyle of work and play. It allows us to avoid getting stuck, stale or out of synch with the harmonious natural flow of existence.

The star-filled galaxy reflected in the rock

I’ll end with a poem from the late great British writer, comedian and poet Spike Milligan, who wrote a poem about the sea shore that went:

I must go down to the sea again,
the lonely sea and sky,
I left my vest and socks there,
I wonder if they’re dry?

Actually Spike was probably parodying the original poem written earlier that went:

I must go down to the seas again, to the lonely sea and the sky,
And all I ask is a tall ship and a star to steer her by...
...And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover,
And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick's over.

Sea Fever by John Masefield (USA) 1916

(photos my own)