Lessons from a Hike

Welcome back to part 2 of the Tali Magimagi series. Woven in this blog post is a story of courage and bravery. You may be looking at the title “Lessons from a hike” and be thinking what is so special about a hike? Well then read on!

April 6, 2019 the much anticipated day. The day finally arrived after months of planning, mental and physical preparation, putting it off and rescheduling the hike. There was no turning back for Andrew and I. Andrew, my dear readers is a friend from the USP disability resource center who is visually impaired. He is doing foundation studies at USP and loves singing. (Click here to watch a video of Andrew singing "Walk On Walk Strong" by the late Tae Kami). April 6 was the day we attempted to hike up Mount Korobaba. Mt Korobaba is located just outside Lami town. Most people dread to hike up Mt Korobaba but put it off for reasons only they would know.

Pictured: Andrew Rageci at the base of Mt Korobaba getting ready to hike up.

We started the hike at 11 a.m. as opposed to the planned meet up time which was 8 a.m. due to miscommunications. I am thankful that I had my friends Marcus and Jamil who accompanied us for the hike. As we started hiking up the mountain, we were met with lots of staring faces with mixed expressions. Some looked inspired that a blind person and his friend are attempting to hike Mt Korobaba together. Other facial expression was not what I expected as people started scratching their heads in disbelief and thinking that I must be crazy trying to hike the mountain with Andrew. I honestly couldn’t care as I made a promise to Andrew to take him up the mountain. Isn’t being inclusive about seeing them as another able bodied person and not differently? I had to keep this in mind as I continued hiking the mountain with Andrew.

After a tiring 2 hours hike, we only managed to reach the half way mark of the mountain range. Our bodies slowly gave up on us and it was getting late that I started worrying about trekking back down before nightfall. As we reached the half way mark, I told Andrew of what he has achieved so far. I also told him about what awaits us in front and that it was up to him if he wanted to continue on. After weighing in, he leaned forward to me and said “This is enough for today. We will try again another day”. From there on I sat him down to share a meal then after an hour of rest we trekked back down just in time before night fall.

This hike has taught me lessons that I hope to share in this session of weaving stories.

"We will try again another day"

Andrew knew that he was tired. He weighed the pros and cons then made a decision to call it a day. However, he made a promise that he would re-attempt to hike Mt Korobaba but this time he will try to reach the top. Reflecting on our individual journey, there comes a time we must accept where we are in our journey. Reflect on what has been achieved, rethink, renew and then attempt on your journey again.

Celebrate every step

Guiding Andrew half way up Mt Korobaba was not easy. I had to be his eyes and instruct him on every step he took. When we were faced with a difficult route we attempted it. Once we have completed that phase, I pat Andrew on his shoulders and told him "good job". This made him more eager to carry on the walk. In life we are so busy awaiting big achievements we forget to celebrate every small achievement and celebrating life itself.

Importance of supporting each other

If it wasn’t for the support of my friends, we would not have been able to reach halfway. There were times I grew tired of guiding and I asked Marcus to assist Andrew. Although Marcus was hesitant because he was not so used to being a guide, he took a shot at it. He knew that I was there to support them also if they needed me. It is important for us to know that there is always support available. All you have to do is to reach out.

Now it is time to trek off this blog post leaving behind this woven story. Till the next blog post, keep weaving stories.

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