Becoming Better
By Natalie Tanke, on living in the Amazon
What is the darkest darkness you have ever experienced? Perhaps as a small child, hiding from the monsters under your bed. Or maybe in a deserted parking garage, where you feel easily victim to the unknown. For me I have never experienced darkness like the Amazon at night. But this was not the scary kind of darkness where you are praying for light. It was a beautiful darkness. With no visual distractions, you could focus all attention on the sounds of the forest, hear your own heartbeat, and process every single one of your thoughts. It was a feeling I know that I cannot recreate anywhere else; it was too unique to do so.
Growing up we have historically heard the phrase “seeing is believing.” So, why were the lowland tropics considered one of the most diverse life zones? I had read about all of the plants, insects, and mammals — trust me, I paid very close attention in lecture. But why was this place so special? Having never left the country before, thrusting myself into the Amazon seemed like my kind of adrenaline rush. And so with two pairs of pants, three shirts, and one camping experience under my belt, I went for it.
I would be lying if I said I wasn’t miserable in the beginning. Heck, I had a breakdown on our flight from Fort Lauderdale to Lima over the thought of not wearing mascara for three weeks. But as our professor Alex Trillo had said, “this trip will be what you make of it,” and I was determined to not waste this opportunity on melodramatic whines. In fact, I was surprised at how quickly I adapted to camping, learning to suppress the humidity, and coping with eating boatloads of white rice. What made this transition easy was largely the environment and people around me.
I think the minute it truly hit me was when we hiked out to the Palm Swamps. At this point, we were exiting a cold spell and being thrown right into the sticky and buggy heat that you would expect of the tropics. As a class we were all moving a little more slowly that day, less amused by the monkeys that we had grown accustomed to.
By the time we reached the Palm Swamps I was tired and desperately wanted to take a nap and cold shower. Instead of quickly turning around, Michael, Alex’s husband made us pause for a second.
He wanted to point out that we had made it to the furthest point we could possibly walk into the Amazon, further than most people would ever get to journey. A privilege. At that moment it hit me that this trip, this opportunity, this experience was an immense privilege. It was arguably one of the coolest things I would ever get to do in my life. How do you ever learn about diversity from a textbook or lecture slide after experiencing that? I know for a fact that I did not get why we should care about the tropics, about climate change, about losing so many species and organisms until I went there.
So how do you move on from a trip like that? It has been four days since I have returned to the States and I am still processing my experience. While in Peru I met people at Cocha Cashu who have given their lives to science, to educating and informing future generations despite many people telling them not to or revoking funding.
I have met the most selfless and welcoming individuals. People without fancy titles who certainly know more about the tropics than I ever will. I saw some of the rarest birds in the world, learned about hundreds of orchids, and saw the Sponge Hypothesis in effect.
So, for all of the people out there who have yet to burst their bubble (and no, a luxury cruise to Europe does not count), I encourage them to do so.
One of the most valuable things I probably learned on this trip was perspective.
I think that perspective is something that we can never have in excess. More perspective is always better, and the perspective I got in the tropics was immensely valuable. Don’t get me wrong, I love the bubble I live in. I grew up with everything I could possibly want and I never once thought of how it got to me. But, there is a lot of world beyond the United States.
This Earth is large and although as individuals we make up a tiny fraction of it, our existence has an enormous impact. When you really get to experience the tropics you realize that most of your daily problems are miniscule in comparison to what is really happening in the world.
I will forever cherish that darkness, those nine nights spent in Cocha Cashu, and that feeling of walking through the clouds in the cloud forest. I have ended my Gettysburg experience exactly as I should have, surrounded by other Gettysburg Great students and mentors in a life changing experience. We have all left the tropics feeling inspired and motivated to educate about what we’ve seen and learned. I am not the same person that I was when I hiked into the tropics. I am better.
Natalie Tanke, on visiting the Amazon as part of her Tropical Biology course. Tanke graduated in 2017 from Gettysburg College with a degree in biology and chemistry.
