In the wild - DofE

2024.7.2.

We walk like this. One step, two steps, three steps, four steps… The day is long. Numb after hours of trekking, my feet stiffly dump my body weight onto the ground until it is an almost automatic reaction. The crocs and sleeping mats and water bottles click and clang on the heavy rucksacks, breaking the silence.

I suddenly remember the phrase I posted on my social media: “always remember to look up when you are minding your steps forward.” So I look up - a whimsical decision that I will probably never regret. The bare soil is not here anymore; vast meadows and grasslands roll in front of us. Like African savanna, the meadows are covered with yellow and green and brown. Quite far away from us, a group of white and brown horses raise their heads towards us before bending down again to resume enjoying the gift of nature. 

It all starts to brighten up when Lizzie, our group navigator, shouts excitedly “I think we are nearly there, just after this hill.” Then, the atmosphere changes. The air becomes thinner and lighter. The laughters and random chats resume. 

Down, down, up, up, down, up, down, up… It is just like life.