Hello Aiman from Spider -- A letter from Tahan..

Dear Aiman,

Hello, and congratulation, for the journey -- yup, the journey... the journey that you've promised and you've dreamed for.

Remember the unrecorded resolution for 2009 you told me at the beginning of the year? Well it's unrecorded because it's 'unconventional'. :) .. so can I reveal, for the sake of a record, now?

You did not resolve for any oversea trips this year -- which was not a typical you; you did not resolve 'to read such and such books by the end of the year'; you did not resolve to do anything for your photography hobby ...

-- instead, your new year resolution was a simple, yet heavy, in your case.

"It is a journey," you said, when we sat down face to face at the start of year 2009. And I smiled, and asked, "a journey far, far away?" then we immediately let silence conquered our conversation. It was the silence of sigh - both of us have no idea on how to get there by then, but deep inside I had trust on you -- I knew you'll embark on the journey one day, I just knew.

.. and look, here you are, with a sack on your back -- packed with lots of love and blessings from your brothers and sisters, packed with all your determinations and sacrifices, and most importantly, packed with the responsibilities, the obligations, the belief and the faith -- you are standing on the beginning of the journey.

Yup, the journey.

... and dear Aiman,

I believe you too witnessed the same thing I observed, about how The Almighty Him lays the

route of your journey. Yes -- it was you and the gang of KOMA planned the Gunung Tahan Expedition, but did you expect anything that God's given to you during your almost 1-week stay in the heart of Tahan Mountain Range?

The scenery, the people, the ambience, the 'untold' stories, and those little miracles you witnessed here and there during trekking -- praise to God, I somehow see this expedition as an real induction for you to enter the whole new world of Him.

Tell me more about the miracles you saw in Gunung Tahan, please. I know you did see something, and you've problem expressing it to others, so sometimes you chose to weep quietly when you were walking alone in the troop.

..and don't worry Aiman, you wept not because of the toughness of the condition, but it's the miracle

s -- the instant answers of God to your prayers -- that moved you to tears.. I understand, as I understand what are you whispering about during jungle trekking, as I understand how meaningful the Tahan Expedition is for you.

(..but still, give me every details about the miracles, please... *wink wink* )

Aiman,

You received angah's welcome-back sms when 18 of you finally touched down in Kuala Tahan. I hope you still remember that kind message from him.

"You will appreciate more things from now on.."

I truly agree with him, Aiman, and in fact, I witnessed the bond of the brotherhood and sisterhood of KOMA are up-leveled. So Aiman, always -- I mean always and always and always remember the feeling of guilty you had in any moments of you letting them down, because you owe them too much, way way way too much.

I truly believe Tahan Expedition was a great beginning for your great great journey ahead, and I shall congratulate you for your Gunung Tahan expedition, and congrats again for finally embarking on the journey that was listed as your 2009's resolution --

--hey pinch yourself, it's NOT anymore a resolution, it's NOT anymore a dream -- you're stepping on the path of the journey now, the journey that you always wanted for years, the journey that bring you close to God.

Congratulations.

Love from Tahan,

Spider

What's your story? - My 1st Gunung Tahan XPDC.

The moment I realized that I was already missing Gunung Tahan, I secretly made a wish that I'm going to come back here, someday.

To be very frank I whispered a lot in this expedition -- I whispered during trekking, I whispered during the time when I was not singing with the troop, I whispered during the time when I woke up 4:30am in most of the morning and 'ignorantly' and 'stupidly' do things alone in the midst of the jungle..

(I apologize for being stubborn and foolish for putting myself in such a danger of moving alone in the deep darkness..)

... but.. I couldn't explain to you how it was really like that made me keep on whispering. Well if I'm not too exaggerating here, I would say it felt like somebody's listening carefully to you, looking straight into your eye and nodding his/her head when you talk...

I've never felt so close to this 'somebody' before..

Then one fine day I recalled that a big brother of mine left a comment in my blog post titled "Muted in silence", where he said,

"God will always be watching your back.. just continue talking and asking... God will talk back to you in its own mysterious way... but you'll figure it out..."

Yes, I have figured out..

Praise to God Almighty, I visited Gunung Tahan with a brand new me. When the meaning of a reborn is so significance, the trails and paths in the jungle of the mountain range somehow became symbolic, and I felt Him walk by me, all the time, in Tahan..

*******************************************************

-- The day when I was on my rushing pace -- together with Daus, Coco and Amie -- moving toward the campsite on Botak, few kms before the peak of Gunung Tahan, the scenery took my breath away;

-- The day when 18 of us heading to Kem Gedong via the winding road on the backbone of Tahan mountain range, the splendour of the view made me officially falling in love..;

-- The day when we stood on the peak of Gunung Tahan and the moment when the fog dispersed, I felt a feeling that was used to be described in a poem, somewhere..

... but -- it's not all about the magnificence of the scenery that made people enchanted and keep on coming back here regardless of the toughness and harshness of the trail, I believe..

..it's more about the story, the story that happened between oneself and the mountains.

The moment I realized that I was already missing Gunung Tahan, I secretly made a wish that I'm going to come back here, someday, just because of the story that happened to me while I was in deep inside the heart of the mountains...

..and I've told you mine, what's your story?