An EPIPHANY… in the Arctic Silence !

Layers packed. Neck scarves, bobble hats, ski gloves, thermal socks, goggles… what did I forget? Ah — hand warmers. Never mind, I may not need them. And with that confidence, I stomped off for another snow vacation.

Little did I know this trip would become an EPIPHANY.

Northern Finland, here I come….

Epiphany 1: Survival Over Sentiment

Hungry and curious, I asked a local what I must try.

“You have to taste Poronkäristys,” she said proudly — the quintessential dish of Lapland.

“What’s in it?” I asked.

“Sautéed reindeer.”

“What?!” My eyes widened. Surely it’s sacrilege to eat Santa’s helpers! What about Christmas? What about Rudolf and his team delivering gifts to millions of children?

She laughed gently and replied, “We have to survive.”

And that was my first lesson.

Reindeer were everywhere — to ride, to pet, to feed, to photograph… and yes, to eat. In stews, burgers, pizzas. Not sentiment. Survival. Simple, practical life in its rawest form.

Epiphany 2: The Absence of Noise

This was not the usual holiday.

There were no loud crowds, no fashionable high streets, no endless activities designed to keep the bored alive !

Instead, there were temperatures plunging to –35°C.

Basic local food.

A handful of restaurants.

Small boutiques selling similar handcrafted memorabilia.

And the for the lively lot:  Backcountry skiing, snowshoeing, ice fishing, husky rides, sauna, hot tubs .. on talking to locals these were entertainment for us, but daily life for the locals integrated in their routines.

Life here wasn’t curated. It was lived.

Epiphany 3: The Vastness of Nature

And then came the real revelation — the Vastness.

Nature surrounded us with a quiet but powerful reminder: we are only a small speck in the grand design of existence.

The snow shimmered so brightly that you forgot the sun hadn’t appeared.

Huskies pulled us across endless white landscapes where trees disappeared and the world felt otherworldly — like stepping into a surreal sci-fi scene.

Standing on a frozen lake, I wondered how life quietly continued beneath the ice..

Evenings meant sitting in an outdoor sauna or hot tub, gazing at clear winter skies where stars felt almost within reach.

And then — the Phenomenal Northern Lights.

Worth every moment of chasing them in various locations past midnight in –40°C with almost frozen toes and fingertips. But the Thrill of locating them was beyond it all!

Life here was simple. Routine was simple. And once again, the message echoed: survival is life’s foundation.

Epiphany 4: Stillness Within

As the days passed, something shifted inside me.

The silence created stillness.

The emptiness created space.

At times, the vastness felt intimidating — nature completely in control. Yet somewhere in the distance, a faint glow from a cabin among snow-covered trees reminded me: contentment lives in simplicity.

Science may explain nature’s forces, but it cannot fully describe how deeply they move you.

Here, coexistence with nature isn’t a philosophy. It’s a way of life. Also enlightening us with a quiet wisdom — that surrendering to nature leads to our richest experiences.

A holiday usually refreshes us with adventure or relaxation.

This one did something more.

• It made me pause.

• Reflect.

• Spend more time in my own head.

• Break down my thoughts.

And above all, it left me deeply appreciative — for other people and cultures, for what adapting to our surroundings looks like, for recognising the beauty in the blank canvas.. because less is more sometimes… when learning to survive..

On Introspection.. it has made me realise that trying something new or throwing oneself out of the ordinary only makes it more memorable..

As..

Sometimes, the greatest journeys aren’t across landscapes.

They’re inward.

By

Anu Raina