Lessons learned from Mt. Marami

Two years ago I went to one of the highest peaks of Cavite, Mt. Marami. Out of the ten or so people who went up the mountain that day, I was among the few who will be conquering their first mountain. We trailed and climbed for almost four and a half hours to reach the summit. At about 1:30PM we were at one of the highest points of Cavite. The trail towards the summit was challenging, at least for a newbie like me during that time. The organizer of our climb found out prior to our trip that the trail was confusing so we opted to hire a local guide plus none of us has ever climbed Mt. Marami before. It was the month of June at that time so the rainy season was slowly taking the throne away from the hot summer days. This became evident as we passed muddy trails at least ankle’s height. We passed creeks and rivers, which according to our guide could swell during hard rains.

The air was fresh and the scenery was green. It was a perfect get away from the chaotic life in the metropolis. Such moments cannot be easily forgotten especially for people who are much more used to the complex life in the city. Out in the mountains, life is slow. You take each day one at a time. You will have more time to think of essential things around you. In the city, you cannot wait for the day to be finished. We get stuck in traffics then sleep when we get home and then wake up the following day only to face almost the same routine as we always do.

We stayed at the summit for almost an hour and quickly made our descend towards our jump off point. I thought that going down was easy not until I realized that droplets of water started to appear from the clear skies. I tagged along with one of my closest friends among the pack during our descend. He is in a way a veteran in trail hikes and mountain climbing. We were talking about the climb during our descend as we glided down the side of the mountain which earlier lead us towrds the summit. He told me that life is like a mountain that we have to climb. There are hardships that we have to conquer and we must overcome them to be able to reach the summit. He also told me that in such activities you will see a person’s real attitude. When I thought about what he said I looked at myself and the people around me and realized the truth in his words. After awhile the droplets grew bigger and started to pour from slowly passing dark clouds. The heat during the ascend was quickly subdued by the rain. There were many times that my foot slipped in my own sandals because the friction between my foot and the rubber surface diminished as mud crept underneath my foot. There were times that I have to call on the person in front of me fearing that I might get lost in the labyrinth of trails and because I was being stalled by my muddy sandals. After sometime we reached a river and talking to a local in the area we found out that a spring can be found at the side of the river. After giving second thoughts and realizing that all of us were out of water we finally drank from the spring. My friend, the same one who talked to me earlier, told me how lucky the locals are because they have a very simple life and that almost all of the things essential for survival are already around them. They have food in the form of fruits and vegetables and some of them raise chickens and pigs so meat is not a question. Potable water is also not a problem as none of us complaied days or weeks after we drank from the spring. Thinking about it I realized that city life has made alot of people too complicated and I am no exception. Many times we create our own needs which are not among the essential things in life. We are a complex bunch of individuals while people in the provinces and mountains enjoy the life to the basics and alot of them do not complain and yet live a happy and fulfilling life.

Everytime I go up in mountains I look at the locals and how they live their lives. Often I envy them because they are living a very simple life and I know that a person who has been exposed to a complex urban life may have a hard time coping with the rural setting. Still, it is best to go out from time to time and appreciate the simple life. It is also a time to reminisce some of my childhood years in the provinces down in the south and also a time to think more about the more essential things in life.

Image taken from: http://www.pinoymountaineer.com/2007/09/mt-marami-405.html

Wisdom in Running

First of all, I am not a professional runner nor a gifted running geek. I am not a running athlete who can run ten kilometers in a little more than thirty minutes. I am just a normal guy who runs around in a normal pace. I haven’t run a marathon yet. I only ran in two events as of the moment, a 5K a year ago and a 10K recently. I didn’t believe that joining running events can give me satisfaction. All I care about is running to my heart’s content. I didn’t run for a long time due to runner’s knee. Almost a year or a little less ago I became discouraged. I was blaming my shoes thinking that I am not running with the correct shoe type. I was blaming my posture thinking that my running form was too lame. Not until recently that looking at a mirror I suddenly cannot recognize myself. It was like waking up one day and you didn’t have a clue what happened to you. I gained a lot of mass, around 5-10kg from my normal weight when I was an undergrad. I guess graduate school makes you really fat.

I started running again. I picked up my running shoes and slipped my shorts and dri-fit shirt into my body. I ran in a cool summer morning and realized how much I missed the instances when my feet would land into the road’s surface with what I hope to be an execution of a graceful impact. I missed how the wind blew into my face. I missed how my lungs would grasp for air in an alternating fashion of inhale and exhale with every running stride I make. I missed how my sweat would pour out as if there was no tomorrow because I do sweat alot!

A year ago all I cared about was conquering distances. I was about to run in a half marathon event when suddenly I can’t due to the injury I had. I guess it was a very normal reaction to strive for more and more miles as you progress in running or jogging. I got hooked into conquering distances and it killed my knee and robbed my confidence during running. During my recent runs I realized that running is a gradual routine of varying cycles ranging from easy, moderate and hard then back to easy, moderate and hard and so on and so forth. It is taken one step at a time. Well, that’s what I read from writers who run with Kenyans. The reason for this is simply to let our muscles relax and recover. I will not go into details with this because I am not a sports scientist.

The best lesson I got from running is discipline. More than a year in grad school changed my sleeping patterns. During my undergrad I used to wake up at five-thirty or six in the morning because I have classes at seven or eight. Grad school classes are usually in the evening but I do had laboratory classes which started at 1PM. This means that I can sleep until late in the morning which I did. My usual pattern was to sleep at twelve or one in the morning and to wake up at seven or eight AM. Running has forced me to sleep early and wake up at four or five in the morning. That’s a three hour difference between my old and new wake up patterns. It’s hard but if you really want to run, certain sacrifices must be made. The addition of running into my day has also robbed me of energy. So I am left with just the energy I need to carry me through the day. I cannot afford to spend alot of time and energy on useless things on the internet nor to spend alot of hours playing computer games which are counter productive.

Running taught me to focus on the things I do. When I’m out running I do not let my thoughts fly. All I can think about (and I can’t resist this temptation) is what I’m currently doing. It’s just me and the road. My thoughts are directed on the right pace, posture and goal for the day. When pain comes in during running, I need to be focused so that I can adjust to what my body currently needs. Do I need to slow down or do I need to adjust my posture? Do I need water or do I need to completely stop?

Finally, running has given me motivation. I used to run alone though alot of people suggest to run in packs for easier pacing and it gives you alot of motivation. Running alone almost all the time except when my brother joins me has taugh me to be motivated to achieve a goal. Running events have a different environment. Joining a 10K fun run recently made me realize how important it is to join such races. Races put alot of motivation. Passing by slower runners gives alot of satisfaction and being left behind by others gives alot of motivation.

Running has alot of lessons that it can impart. It is not just to break a sweat or to loose fat. It is like a natural tendency towards pavements and roads. It is a test of human physiology (especially when you’re running a marathon) and it is a discipline unfolding.

Taken from: Fred Rohe's "Zen of Running"