The Whispering Wall

Orienteering was supposed to save us as children. Part race, part treasure hunt, we read specially prepared maps to navigate our way through the wild to a number of checkpoints. One year, the Whispering Wall was nominated to be on the list. Built over 120 years ago, the reservoir retaining wall overlooking the bush landscape proved to have powerful acoustic abilities. 

The concave wall is perfectly curved and forms one sector of a circle, where sound waves travel unobstructed from one end to the other. We soon found out that words spoken at one side of the wall could be heard from more than 150 metres away on the other side. We were captivated. Forgetting about the other checkpoints, we lingered and listened to strangers share their secrets. They sounded so close by. 

At the time, it felt harmless to be a passive participant, waiting silently to receive soliloquies from the other side. We compared our scars to pass the time in between intimate leaks. We were too young to understand why truths were whispered at a concrete wall. But voices once trapped were now free to be released into the wind. After our hot sticky heads had heard too much, we spread out and wandered off into the scrub.