5 Great Points And The Mountain Was Conquered

by Maria Beatriz D. Mendiola

Last February 17 was an uphill—ergo, mountain—climb for us as we sought to conquer the heights of Mount Batulao. This activity, organized by Iraya Study Center, a center for leadership for female high school and university students established by the Kalinangan Youth Foundation in 1986, sought to contribute to the holistic development of its attendees. As most of us were first-time mountain climbers, we were accompanied by seasoned mountaineers from a chapter of mountaineers from the University of the East.

Being one of this majority of amateurs, my perspective on this excursion may probably turn out to be a documentation of my clumsy struggles to go on with the hike or my amusing laments for not actually preparing enough for this agile quest. Nonetheless, I did gain valuable insights on life through this experience as it was patterned on Saint Josemaria Escrivá’s vision of the universal call to holiness and the great truth that any noble activity—including mountain-climbing—can actually be offered to God and sanctified. In fact, he once wrote,

“Let those very obstacles give you strength. God’s grace will not fail you: ‘Inter medium montium pertransibunt aquae!’ You shall pass through the mountains!” (The Way, 12).

Besides the overflowing gratitude that I share on behalf of everyone else in Iraya, here then are five insights I gained and hope to share from this challenging yet fulfilling climb.

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#1. The climb begins even before the first step on the mountain.

So did I realize some paces through the climb, almost breathless and already tired from walking probably only on the first stretch. Perhaps, to actually gain enough strength and agility to climb with poise, I should have slept enough, taken the proper breakfast and begun a consistent exercise routine way ahead of the day for the climb. At any rate, the same truth seems to apply in the deeper facets of life: Your exam begins even before you actually take it; the way you save your family life and friendships begins even before great trials come to unsettle it; living your faith truly and daily, in the little things, actually lessens the chances of your falling into greater temptations when they come; etc. Indeed, the little things account for so much.

#2. Good company and sweeteners are needed along the way.

Perhaps, the good company and the little glucose bits (fancy term for raisins and jellyace) that we had during those times contributed partly to the fact that we did finish both ascent and descent even if we were all very tired. The encouragement of the others and the mere realization that you are not alone in the journey are enough drivers to actually continue on even for exhausted feet. Besides, sugar does give great energy not only in the biological level but in higher planes as well. Consider this: Even when life is at its most difficult peak, it is precisely the cheerful person who gets to continue living life and not mere existence. This awesome, cheerful composure in the midst of suffering can also inspire this person’s immediate company to do the same. So, cheer up! That smile not only brings you back to life but also revives other people.

#3. Suffering is not always bad.

In relation to the second insight, one also understands that good can be brought out even from suffering. “The ways of the Lord are not easy, but we were not created for an easy life, but for great things, for goodness.” So did Pope Emeritus Benedict once say and so does apply too in the context of the mountain climb. Perhaps, strictly speaking, there’s no easy way to climb a mountain. Whichever way you choose, the path will offer some amount of challenge and no peak can be reached by a simple straight path. Once you reach the peak of the mountain, though, breathlessness and soring limbs no longer matter: the view is just too picturesque to absorb. Here perhaps lies a great antithesis of the modern erroneous equation that suffering equals evil. Suffering is simply a fact of life. How we take it—as a path to see greater goodness or as a pit to give things up—spells a great difference.

#4. It is easier to climb up than to lower oneself.

This realization may seem wrong because it is easier to slide down than to climb the ladder but it starts to make sense once you contextualize it in a rugged terrain. There, sliding down carelessly cannot be an option because such an act can be detrimental to one’s life. Thus, while carrying yourself to reach the top indeed requires strength and agility, shifting your weight properly to avoid falling off as you go down the unpredictable paths of a mountain is even harder. In the same manner, perhaps, however difficult it is to “rise through the ranks” in this extremely competitive world, I reckon that the other path is actually harder to take: Lowering yourself to serve other people and humbly accepting your position if it is where your calling lies—that is a greater challenge. Few may probably prefer this way but in its unnoticed excellence, however paradoxically, is greater nobility.

#5. Nature’s picturesque beauty sings the praises of God.

This is, perhaps, the greatest realization that any mountaineer or any nature adventurer may probably come across in his adventures: in the unpredictable and limitless beauty of nature, one can actually see God’s greatness. In the first place, before the beauty that only nature can provide—the type that seizes the heart in wonder and the eyes in awe—one cannot but admit the amazing craftsmanship of the Supreme Artist. Here, one sees almost limitless beauty not reached by manmade works. Second, away from the rigid and predictable structures of city life, one is reminded in activities like this hike that, indeed, we cannot control everything. There must be Someone else who intelligently designed this intelligentlypatterned universe. Here springs a great comfort that I abide in the Catholic faith: This Someone is Love Himself and not some impersonal, distant Supreme Being.

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So, there. Those were just some thoughts I gathered from the February 17 hike. Given the richness of the experience which tapped not only our physical make-up but our capacities to reflect as well, I no longer regret any portion of this worthwhile experience. If only to remind myself and my friends of these five thought-provoking insights, another climb would not be so bad to consider. Until our next climb, though, let me content myself with applying the same quote to life’s other mountains:

“Let those very obstacles give you strength. God’s grace will not fail you: ‘Inter medium montium pertransibunt aquae!’ You shall pass through the mountains!” (The Way, 12).