Over The Ridge: When the Trail Teaches Life Lessons
The sun had not yet fully risen when I walked along the trail to the top of the hill behind our village. A thin layer of mist was still playing among the pine trees, standing like alert soldiers in neat rows. "Hmm... so refreshing!" I grumbled as I took a deep breath of the pure morning air.
Many years ago, when I was a child, Old Man Karyo often talked about "over the ridge" - a term he picked up from the British soldiers who had lived in our village during the revolution. "Son, life is like climbing a hill. There is something called 'over the ridge' - a point where you can see the scenery hidden behind the hill," his words still ring in my mind.
Who would have thought that in my forties, I finally understood what Old Man Karyo meant. Climbing a hill indeed reflects the journey of life. Sometimes we run out of breath, sometimes we slip, and sometimes we want to give up. "Oh my God!" I groaned as my foot got caught on a tree root that was sticking out mischievously.
But the funny thing is, it is precisely when we are about to give up that we often find extra strength. Like this morning, just as my knees started to tremble and my breath started to get short, I reached the top of the hill. And, my goodness... the view beyond the hill was beyond my imagination!
The terraced rice fields reflected the morning light like a giant broken mirror. The blue mountains in the distance seemed to wave friendly. Down there, small villages looked like toys neatly arranged on a green carpet.
"Ah, so this is what they call 'behind the ridge'," I thought with a smile. The point where all the hardships of the climb are paid off. The point where a new perspective opens our eyes. The point where we realize that behind every hardship, there is a beautiful view waiting.
While wiping the sweat from my forehead, I remembered another of Old Man Karyo's words: "Son, sometimes we need to climb higher to see how small our problems really are." That's right. From this height, the houses below look small, just as our problems will look small when viewed from a higher perspective.
The sun was getting higher when I decided to go down. But this time, my steps felt lighter. There was something different after experiencing "over the ridge" - an experience that teaches us that every climb in life, no matter how difficult, there must be a reward at the top.
"Hey, come visit sometime!" The voice of Mr. Darmin, my neighbor who was hoeing his field, interrupted my reverie. I smiled and waved. Yes, life is like climbing a hill - sometimes tiring, but there is always a sweet surprise behind the ridge that we climb.
The Almighty is truly Creative. He created hills not just as mounds of earth, but as teachers who teach us about life. And today, I am grateful to have received a valuable lesson from a simple "over the ridge" on this bright morning.
