Boomdeyada

"Two down this month, thousands more to go," I muse as a slowly slip into sweet slumber in the homeward-bound bus, lost in the recesses of Ilocos Norte. "Cambodia, Pannzian, where to next?"

I'm jarred into consciousness by my poor seatmate Brian, whose tall frame has doomed him to 12 hours of awkward positions on the small bus seats. I happily keep up my contemplating, an activity which I have taken to quite often in the past few weeks. My mind circles around the events during the past four days.

I think of Adams, the community hidden from the world in the mountains. By the house where we stayed the night, there ran a river who between its turbulent yet widely-spaced rapids had the bluest and most serene waters. I remember sitting on a large solitary rock whose high flat surface afforded me a dry spot. Dragonflies flew about in their multitudes as I spent the better part of the hour in perfect peace.

I think of the falls, whose cool waters and sheer grandness made the one-and-a-half hour hike seem like mere hopscotch. I still hear our delighted screams as we all jumped the cliff down into the pool.

I think of Lover's Peak, where I beheld the sun rise through a thin layer of fog. I imagine how many sweethearts shared their first kiss here, lovingly smiling into the same sun.

I think of all the nights we got together and celebrated life. Ten wonderful people, all unique to the world, all now special to me.

In my last thought as I begin to end another addition to my budding adventure book, the image of two astronauts floating in space comes to the forefront. I quickly shut my eyes and smile to myself, saying

THE WORLD IS JUST AWESOME.