Being a Whale

With Size comes tranquility, small things lead frantic lives.

If you were a Whale all but the grandest things would pass beneath your notice.

I have been studying whales since 1996 , one of the delights of that experience has been discovering that they can be as curious as we can be but the difference is the size, there is no way a whale adopt a human time scale.

One of the major clues to the function of a behavior pattern is the rhythm of its occurrence. Because we commonly associate play with quick motions, the key of able to recognize play in whales is learning to think differently; in terms of long, slow rhythms, where things occur very lingeringly.

To understand whales one must be deeply patient, must slow way down and be content to observe passively for a long time.

"It is a sense of tranquility - of life without urgency, power without agresion- that has won my heart to whales"- (Roger Payne)