The World of Yesterday – Iceland by Engels

I travelled to the outskirts of Iceland to escape human’s footprints on our Earth. The beauty of the lagoons, the wildlife, the formations of mountains and valleys were heavenly. For most of the 7 billion people that inhabit our Earth, it is certain that the sights I’ve seen were unfathomable to many. I spent most of my journey struggling to understand that once, our all respective homes were once as such comparable beauty. Though the sights were devoid of human’s impact, however, the sad truth is hidden from sight, and could only be revealed in the form of time.

As I trek up the snow-ridden caps of Icelandic glaciers the emergence of time consumes me. With every year that passes by the glaciers recede by hundreds of meters, and it dawned on me that it is soon these sights will never been seen again. I was told that once these Icelandic glaciers stretched as far as my eye could see, spanning hundreds of kilometers. I trekked into a newly formed ice cave, the consequence of the melting glacier caps. The dazzling reflections as the fractured ice breaks rays of sun into thousands of glistening fragments is of unparalleled beauty.

Yet at the back of my mind, under all the awe and admiration, a little voice reminds me that all the beauty is short-lived.

Pictures and words by Lauren Engel and Jeremy Engel