THE ISLANDS OF THE ANCIENT SADDLEBACKS
Someone once said, “Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.” Never have I really seen the reality of this truth until I had the chance to visit a place that’s far off the beaten path. It’s a region of our world that’s hard to get to and even harder to leave, an inspiring land that has gripped the imagination of thousands ever since its first visitor set foot on shore. It’s a world of wonder, an island of intrigue—the Galapagos Islands.
The first recorded visit to the enchanted place happened by chance in 1535. It was the bishop of Panama who stepped foot on this undiscovered land after accidentally finding it on his voyage to Peru. The bishop was amazed to see the rich diversity of this untouched domain. He was entertained by birds with bright blue feet bobbing up and down in their clumsy courtship dance. He was intrigued by swimming and sun-bathing iguanas laying on the sharp black lava rocks. The white sandy beaches were filled with lazy sea lions, basking without a care in the full strength of the noonday sun. He was surprised to see penguins, perfectly content living in the equatorial region far away from their Antarctic homeland.
But of all the birds of the air, fishes of the sea, and beasts of the field, that which caught his attention the most were the giant, tank-like tortoises covered in their armored shells. To the bishop, the shells of these ancient reptiles looked like the Spanish Galapagos horse saddles of that era. So, he named these tortoises Galapagos. Then, when the Flemish mapmaker, Abraham Ortelius, published his world atlas in 1570, he referred to the islands as Los Galopegos which means “islands of the saddlebacks.”
And so has this land of wonder been called ever since. The tortoises that give this place their name are some of the rarest creatures on earth. Exploited for their oil and meat, the population of the Galapagos tortoise has been decimated from 250,000 in the sixteenth century to around 3,000 in the 1970s. Five of the original fifteen different species are already extinct. The remaining ten are on the endangered list.
Now federally protected, these ancient islanders live the easy-going, laid-back life. With no natural predators, they are free to come and go as they please. Consisting of a mainly plant-based diet, these gentle giants can grow up to six feet long and weight up to a whooping 800 pounds. With a generous appetite, they can eat up to eighty pounds of food a day and can survive for a whole year without eating or drinking. They are the longest living reptile on earth, with an average lifespan of over 150 years! They carry their home on their back, and they graze wherever the grass is greener. Most of the time, this takes them up to the highlands and even to the crater crest of volcanoes. They are not afraid to venture to higher ground if that’s what it takes to survive.
There are so many amazing characteristics of these grass-grazing, gentle giants—many of which it would be well for us to emulate in our own lives. These characteristics will improve longevity and enable us to outlast the elements.
Take a look at these examples. The Galapagos tortoise teaches us this:
Be blessed and don’t stress.
Wherever you go, make yourself at home.
Rest well, and take long walks.
Don’t settle for the lowlands; hike to higher ground but take it one step at a time.
Be hard on the outside but soft on the inside.
Chew your food carefully and stick with the plant-based diet.
If you eat clean, a large appetite won’t hurt you.
Save and store up for times of want.
Be flexible and adapt to your environment.
If you run out of sustenance, just be patient and use what you got.
Have no enemies.
Be at peace with those around you.
Remember, you may be slow, but you are rare and unique, and there is none quite like you.
Live your life in such an impressive way that one day people will name an island after you.
Many are the life lessons to learn from these majestic creatures. But one of the lessons that sticks out to me the most is this: Many times, slow and steady is better than fast and gassed.
Sometimes, when we live our lives in the fast lane, we miss out on the beautiful scenery around us. We invest our time and energy trying to reach a specific destination, attain a certain goal, and yet, we fail to enjoy the journey. We fail to embrace the process of what it takes to get there.
Human beings have a tendency to seek instant gratification without considering the long-term result. Many pour their lives into trying to make a living, and yet, they’re not really living. We work hard to attain and accumulate, and yet, we struggle to find genuine peace and lasting satisfaction. We are outwardly stimulated and inwardly dissatisfied. Our bellies are full, and yet, we’re still hungry. And our discontent with what we have drains us of life and robs us of peace. If we continue to live in this mindset, we will eventually run out of gas when it matters the most.
Now, don’t get me wrong. There’s nothing that takes the place of a good work ethic and the strong ambition of wanting to live a productive life. But the lesson worth learning from the ancient saddleback is that slow and steady is better than fast and gassed. It is better to go slow and far rather than fast and short. So, plan ahead. Make every decision with the end in mind. Don’t rush into things. And don’t procrastinate your goals. If you want to live long, you must first live strong. And if you want to outlast the elements, you have to take it one day at a time.
So, let us be like the ancient saddlebacks of Galapagos. May we be the rare and unique ones that people flock to see. May our modesty and simplicity be our strength and longevity. And if we do, perhaps one day someone will name an island after us! But until then, just keep heading to the highlands in faith! And by God’s grace, I’ll see you at the top!