There is nothing more unsettling to me than being surprised by a gigantic winged insect whilst visiting the restroom. On an average night, I would have responded with A. a scream, B. an immediate retreat, C. the throwing of something heavy at the intruder, or D. some combination of the three.
On our first night at the Sir Edmund Hillary Outdoor Pursuit Center, however, I encountered a bug that made all three options undesirable.
Unfortunately, this emerald moth, speckled with dots of creamy white and the deepest of blacks, was clinging to the back of the bathroom door, making a safe retreat impossible. The space we were sharing was so small that a panicked screech could easily cause it to take flight, ratcheting up my bug anxiety considerably. Even if I had been in possession of something to throw at it, that would not have been an option; crushing something that large could only be considered murder, and if I missed, the massive bug would probably have had the strength to chuck the item right back at me.
No, none of my usual responses would do.
In the end, I settled for making a mad dash through the door, swinging my arms above my head and shimmying about the front porch in my attempt to rid myself of a bug that had probably not moved in hours.
The next morning, I walked outside to find a dozen large green moths littering the ground, all of them dead. At first, I just thought them to be an extremely sickly breed of moth. However, after asking our OPC guides, Luke and Sally, the group was informed that these mammoth insects were not a sickly bunch in the least (a fact that was confirmed every time I tried to wash my hands or use the showers). The reason that they were making motionless appearances on the porch each morning was because these insects only spent one day as moths. The majority of their lives are spent in the worm/cocoon stages. They have roughly twenty-four hours to live from the time they sprout wings and burst forth into the world.
Personally, If I were experiencing the world on a brand new set of wings, I wouldn’t hang out in a lady’s bathroom all night. But that’s just me.
Still, if I wouldn’t want to grace the side of a porcelain throne for hours on end, these moths made me consider-made the group consider-how we would spend our winged hours. What would we do if we had a short amount of time to spend with a wonderful and rare opportunity? What would we wish to accomplish?
With that thought in mind, we embarked on our five days at the OPC.
–Alex W. overcame her fear of heights in order to successfully rock-climb on a New Zealand mountain.
–Greg fit the last piece of strategy in place to complete a team building swamp-crossing exercise without exposing us all to pond scum.
–Alex F. and Nick braved the below freezing weather out in the New Zealand bush away from the group, creating their own shelter and dealing with furry critters during a solo overnight.
–Catherine experienced the lush scenery from a whole new angle, conquering the precarious monkey wire high ropes course challenge.
–Michelle took a leap of faith, facing her fears by jumping off of a loft bridge into freezing water after our raft building/racing experience.
–Nina agily scaled the outdoor climbing wall while carrying a full-sized pack on her back.
-Stacey (Stefan and Casey) were the first to master the strenuous layback procedure used to climb the rock face of a mountain warmed by a rare afternoon of blazing sunlight
All of us have learned to spread our wings and seize fleeting opportunities this past week. Although one of us will be leaving to spread their wings elsewhere, we will always share our experience at the OPC, where we were taught the importance of seizing the day and living life to the fullest.
–Laura Weyl
