This is a photo of where I was last December: Kaiteriteri, South Island, one of the many stops during my New Zealand travels. When I took this photo, I remember trying to get my head around the idea that I was sitting on a sandy beach, in a t-shirt, looking out at this view, knowing that my family back home in England would be huddled around a fire in blankets and drinking hot chocolate.
Last year, I travelled to the centre of the Australian desert and took this photo of iconic Uluru. Not that you are able to tell this was taken 12 months ago: it could’ve been last week, or even the year I was born. The reason I point this out is because this rock is a very physical and literal symbol of stability, and the unchanging habit of monolithic natural features. And this stark reminder of unyielding durability juxtaposes with the examples of transformation that flow around it everyday.
Seeing a glacier in real life is like seeing behind the scenes of the world; the pure geological strength of the planet displayed in front of you. Glaciers are the remnants of the cold carving knife that shaped the landscape millions of years ago, forging valleys and shaping mountains, and a stark reminder of the forces of our environment and the ways in which it’s changed over time.
Alys Journals 