It was beyond what I expected.
Far more than what I've prepared for mentally and physically.
On top of Mt. Daguldol, we faced off against the storm (Typhoon Santi). Our only protection was our respective tents and the power of prayer and support for each other. The howling wind flapping against the tent brought upon shivering coldness against our already damp skin. We decided to disperse to different available tents when our tent was nearing its collapse. I waited for dawn under the shelter of someone's tent, shaking, wet, our feet waded in a pool of water already entering the premises. The wind continued its journey in our camp site and all we did was pray and stay together on top of the mountain.
Saturday early dawn, everyone started packing up to travel down the trail we trod on the previous day. The trail wasn't easy since the rain caused the path to be muddy, slippery and dangerous. I had numerous falls, accidental slips, but I continued. We all continued, helping each other, trying to lift each other's spirits. Despite what happened, we could still hear laughter from each other, still positive.
On the foot of the mountain, we decided to stay on the beach for the night. Sunday, when we were on our way to travel back home, the bus broke down. So we had to wait for it to be fixed, for about 5 hours at most. But what I heard from my fellow companions were not murmurs of irritation, but words of encouragement, that ended up to doing fun stuff together to outwit the boredom creeping in.
My weekend was fun, amidst the stormy challenges we encountered.
Although there was a prepared "survival game" program by the Area officers, what we experienced in Batangas deserved to be fitted to a "reality" show. We faced off not only our own limitations, but the element of nature and circumstances.
Truly, through God nothing is impossible.
And you can always find shelter in Him in the time of storm.
So I, along with my fellow hikers, EXPLORED, EXPERIENCED and SURVIVED.
^_^
