It struck me a few weeks ago that there is a special kind of moment that can really boost your wellbeing, and sometimes even shape who you are, in a positive way. They’re called awe-inspiring moments.

When this hit me, I started looking back over the recent months and wanted to list some of those moments, share them with you here, and chat about why they are important.

Woah, I’m So Tiny

As I am writing this blog post, it is 5.39pm Central European Time, and I am on a plane flying back from Chambery in France to London Stansted airport in the United Kingdom.

I peek outside the window, and I look at the Alps and their snowy tops, stretching for miles, like a barrier marking the entry to a distant Tolkien-like world. It is vast, old, magnificent.

This makes me reflect on the week I just spent in Belle Plagne with my parents, my sister and her cute 3-year-old son, snowboarding, snowshoeing, playing in the snow and gulping melted cheese.

I spent a week focusing on the present, and it felt pretty good.

But I then realised : I feel calmer because I also experienced awe-inspiring moments.

It’s the breathtaking sunset, the concert that gets you a bit teary, the massive cathedral that fills you with a sense of wonder. Or, in my case here, it’s that moment of anticipation before snowboarding down a mountain, surrounded by the Alps in the morning light.

The “woah, I am so tiny” moments.

During those, time slows down, it nearly stops. It feels a bit like gravity just changed.

What?

A few months ago, I read the book “Chatter” by Ethan Kross. He wrote that these magical, breathtaking moments had a way to quiet the voices in our heads, the ones that usually fuel feelings of anxiety. He calls those voices Chatter.

“Awe is the wonder we feel when we encounter something powerful that we can’t easily explain. We are often flooded by it in the natural world when we see an incredible sunset, mile-high mountain peak, or beautiful view.
Awe is a self-transcendent emotion in that it allows people to think and feel beyond their own needs and wants. […] The neural activity associated with self-immersion decreases, similar to how the brain responds when people meditate or take psychedelics like LSD.
Some people experience it when they see Bruce Springsteen in concert, read an Emily Dickinson poem, or take in the Mona Lisa at the Louvre, […] when they see something extraordinary in person, like a high-stakes sports event or a legendary object such as the U.S. Constitution, or witness something intimately monumental, like an infant taking its first steps.”

I’d like to share here a few moments that got me to do a double take.

6 Awe-inspiring moments in The Last 18 months

• Harnessing Nature’s Power: The Wind Turbine Field Off The Coast of North Wales (Gwynt y Môr)
• Part of Something Bigger: Early Breakfast in The New Forest With Wild Horses
• The Magic of Live Theatre: Wicked The Musical
• Century Old Memories: West Pier, Brighton
• The Passage of Time: Botanisk Have - Copenhagen’s Botanical Gardens
• Shared Experiences: The Eras Tour concert, Wembley Stadium

Harnessing Nature’s Power: The Wind Turbine Field Off The Coast of North Wales (Gwynt y Môr)

In August 2024, I was traveling back from Snowdonia National Park. The train I was on passed Gwynt y Môr, a 576-megawatt offshore wind farm located in the Irish Sea off the coast of North Wales. The farm has 160 wind turbines that rise 150 metres above mean sea level. That’s roughly the equivalent of 273,000 kettles¹!

I had seen wind farms before, but the sheer size of this one really struck me. It got me to think about how hard humankind had worked to design and build this way to generate power from wind, to then distribute across the country and power British homes. It’s a complex, large-scale undertaking that affects so many people’s lives!

Part of Something Bigger: Early Breakfast in The New Forest With Wild Horses

In August 2024, I went on a camping trip in the New Forest District. It is one of those rare places where animals roam freely, without any fences around the campsite. If you head to the shower block for a wee in the middle of the night, be prepared to run into a pony!

One morning, we sat in the field right on the edge of the campsite to have breakfast. It was one of those sunny and crisp mornings. Horses were chilling in the clearing, hundreds of meters away. It was a calm and beautiful moment.

I turned around for a couple of seconds, when a horse had decided to say hello and stand right in the middle of our little setup!

It was very funny (and only slightly tense), and a good reminder that there’s a whole world out there, living at its own pace.

The Magic of Live Theatre: Wicked The Musical

About 18 months ago, I took my parents to a musical on the West End, in London. I wanted them to experience the unique atmosphere of musicals here, which are far less popular in France.

So I took them to see Wicked.

Within the first five minutes, I knew it was the perfect choice: dynamic set, uplifting music, and the cast’s energy was palpable. West End musicals are so immersive: it really feels like it’s happening everywhere around you.

Then came the song “Defying Gravity”. Eventually the song reaches its climax: the super talented singer is on a broom, high above the stage, and sings the final notes with spotlights reflecting on her in every direction.

It was breathtaking. Time seemed to stop. These people were so talented! Humankind’s ingenuity and inspiration are remarkable. I felt so fortunate to have access to this kind of cultural experience. This is why I love London so much!

Century Old Memories: West Pier, Brighton

Whenever I’m in Brighton, I make time to see the West Pier at sunset.

West Pier is an old pleasure pier now in ruin. Opened in 1866, it closed in 1975, gradually deteriorating, until it was destroyed by two fires in 2003. It was popular in the early 20th century, it even had a concert hall!

I’m amazed at how they built such a massive pier in the 1860s. The metal remains still standing in the sea are like a snapshot of the past.

It’s is one of those sights that makes me feel small. It’s ancient, big, and although it barely survived its 150 years of existence, it still endures.

The passage of Time: Botanisk Have - Copenhagen’s Botanical Gardens

In August 2023, I visited Copenhagen for the first time, and it quickly became one of my favourite places in Europe.

I had never been to a botanical garden before, but I was really intrigued by the historical glasshouses at Botanisk Have, so I decided to go.

I was so impressed! I was especially moved by the old glasshouses, dating from 1872! It made me wonder how they were built with the technology of the time. I am fascinated by humankind’s ingenuity in the 19th century!

I pictured the early researchers bringing back plants from around the world. The garden has evolved so much in 150 years. There’s even a small glasshouse with lots of butterflies flying around freely. It’s something special.

This place really made me appreciate the passage of time.

Shared Experiences: The Eras Tour concert, Wembley Stadium

Between August 15th and 20th 2024 , Taylor Swift played five extra shows in Wembley Stadium in London, as part of her “Eras Tour” .

A friend managed to get last minute tickets (getting them is usually a nightmare, with complex queuing systems involved), so I jumped at the chance. I’ve been to plenty of concerts, but nothing on this scale.

The crowd was so united, so joyful, so friendly - I had never experienced anything like this before.

Towards the end of the show, Taylor Swift interrupted her song “Everything” after about a minute, saying “I’m not really doing it justice…”. The stadium then blew up in screams. My ears had never hurt that much! Turns out, everyone had guessed that Ed Sheeran was about to jump on stage to sing with her!

The joy, volume and sheer number of people around me, it was grounding.

Sometimes We Just Need to Exist For a While

This was a good exercise. It helped me notice how those simple moments really affected me, and made me feel more present.

So, every once in a while, stop and look around. Take it in. Be present. You’ll remember that moment.