Just January of this year, I remember braving the noisy streets of Cubao at 4 AM with some of my friends as my half-hazy head couldn't believe that I finally decided to try escaping the crowds of Manila and climb my first mountain. Weeks and days before that however, it was already undeniable - staying in the metro for a prolonged period of time is toxic and yuppies posting breath-taking views of mountain ranges on Instagram wasn’t helping in letting the stress be. That’s probably why millennials, especially young professionals, have never travelled before as frequent as they in 2016.

And in my case, each of the seven mountains I trekked this year convinced me that I became a jetsetter and as an urban dweller, I definitely became braver.

I grew up a few steps away from the sea and in a way, it made the deep waters to be my home. So I really think that this urge to conquer hills is just the other half of my soul wanting to heed the call of the mountains. It started through the images I channeled inside my head, how would it feel to be under the scorching heat of the sun? What would it be like for the breeze of the winds to blow my face? And how far would the fields stretch across horizons? I wanted answers to my questions. 

And there was no stopping me.

As someone new to trekking, I did not know what to expect. I even hesitated if I was fit enough to climb mountains. There’s always that beginner’s doubt. It may include the appropriateness of the trekking attire (I once brought a denim jacket that’s heavier than my shoes and pants combined), the sufficiency of water (1 liter is always never enough for a single peak), the difficulty level of trail (because 2/9 may already be 10/9 for others.) and many other petty issues along the climb.

The only constant thing however, at least for me, is that it is always fun.

It’s funny how it was really triggered by Instagram. I joined the platform way back in October of 2015 and luckily, I stumbled upon amazing hubs that feature “travelgrammers”, a term coined to pertain to users who post on Instagram their escapades on beaches, on seas, waterfalls, road trips and many other adventures. 

Yet it was the mountains that got me most fired up.

There’s an inexplicable thing about mountains that makes me want to go back each time.

At one point, I got so captivated with sea of clouds even if I couldn’t really understand at first why people were obsessed with them at a time when they became a frequent subject on photos online.

And I saw it myself – the poetry that the creeping of the mountains spoke aloud.

I knew that I wanted to see the photographs come to life. And it was very satisfying to see them unfold in a beautiful way that they did right before my eyes.

Later on, I figured out that trekking mountains also had other aspects that people who haven’t tried mountaineering for a couple of times may not realize just yet.

An increase in the number of tourist-climbers also creates opportunity for locals to earn money on top of the little income they have. This trend has seen natives of a certain barangay to be tour guides, sellers of food and beverages and experts on environmental management.

This is why it has also become a habit for me to add a little amount to the rates the local tour guides impose. I feel like going to their mountain and paying them for their service is a big help already to them and their families.

All these I still believe is a homage that I pay to myself. That in every scattered horizon of mountain ranges, I recognize myself a little. That in every slope I climb, I enjoy a day of my existence. And that in each sweat rolling down my face, somewhere deep inside, my soul is fed.

There is so much more in climbing mountains than the idea of reaching the summit.

[[ This essay and the contest both have a sentimental value in my heart. I always wanted to join the essay writing contest by The Eyoners’ Club but since their Spelling Bee was also to be held on the same day, I exhausted all my money for the Bee. The contest started around 8:30 and would end on 11:30 but I woke up around 9:30. I had 30 minutes of thinking until a friend lent me his money for the Registation Fee. Hurrying to the venue, I was a bit intimidated when I came to the contest area because some big heads in the writing arena in the university were there and I was oh so late! But still, when they handed me down the theme of the contest “MSU’s Greatest Story Begins With Me”, all these words, flashbacks and thoughts came rushing. I didn’t even have time to edit the piece since the time I had left for the contest wasn’t that long enough to allow me a draft. And more incredibly, I never thought that just by writing, I could receive a monetary award aside from the certificate. I paid back my generous friend and went on more inspired in writing.<3]]]

Those were the lights I will never forget. They were not just some ordinary lights but they formed a spectrum of different colors, formation, magnitude and distances. It was called the Symphony of Lights – a tourist attraction and an always-awaited event every night in what is dubbed as “Asia’s Finest Skyline” near Victoria Harbour. Just last summer of 2012, I had the chance to participate in a Peace Forum in Hong Kong. While watching the symphony, a newly-found friend from a well-respected university in Manila asked me a question out of nowhere: “Do you think your university has done something in bringing you to places you’ve never been before?” Wearing my I-Love-MSU shirt, I bowed down then gazed at the all-torn four-year old pair of high-cut shoes I was wearing. I smiled back at her and answered, “Absolutely, my prime mover is Mindanao State University”.

When I first set foot on MSU grounds, I really did not think that this would be the best school for me. There were people who wore all-black suits covering their entire bodies. A strange sound of someone who sang in tongues blasted some loud speakers. I couldn’t understand the feeling of intertwining fear and curiosity then. This is how the norm works for new people in the land. All I told myself was timing. When I would realize that I don’t really deserve studying here, I would immediately pack my bags and go home without second thoughts. After five years of stay, I realized that if not here, I couldn’t be happier elsewhere.

My MSU story is not really a journey that is only ventured on going to normal roads. As an adventurer, I love standing at crossroads. I joined a semi-academic organization, MSU – Honors Program when I was on my sophomore year. The program served as the key on my journey. It enabled me to open some doors I always thought were locked. There were parts of my passion that reawakened me. There were versions of my interests that rekindled my senses.

I never thought that this insatiable hunger for facts and general information would lead me to a very long road. I was and still am a quiz show addict. It pained me to miss a single quiz bee though I had heavier academic commitments. My love for knowledge was best expressedwith the joy I felt from reading every single question, raising cardboards with sometimes the most ridiculous answers, and, if lucky enough, posing for a picture with medals and trophies in the awarding. It is also through joining these quiz bowls that I got to meet and became friends with some of the most amazing kids in the university, those other students whose fields are far from my own league. One essence of competitions like this is for me to see a summary of what is inside MSU – bright and talented young people playing fair regardless of who or what their opponents are. MSU is a battlefield – a friendly one.

One more passion that I developed more here in college is writing. I post Facebook status quite often and I feel unworthy if I cannot tweet every day or blog every month. These manifestations magnify how I love playing with words. This is I think one of the few things I love doing best. I remember myself marveling over joining Mindanao Varsitarian, MSU’s official student publication, since I had some journalistic roots in high school. But when I read some serious anti-administration articles on the pub, I lost hope and told myself that this wasn’t the channel I wanted to convey my thoughts. Not until I became a staff of RFJPIA’s publication, The Worksheet, that I did not realize I was wrong with my notion all along. I should have been and should always be adaptive. This was something I never completely understood then. But thanks to the fate of winning the University-wide On-the-spot Essay Writing Contest for two consecutive Founding Anniversaries, I gathered all the hopes back that I still am an effective writer. MSU is a battlefield – a dynamic one.

On top of it all, I think that the best gift this university has ever given me is leadership. It is hard to be a leader in a locus where the students are never homogenous. There are cultural, religious, ethnic, geographic, social and lingual barriers everywhere. I had to be someone I had never been since I wanted to accommodate every part of the organizations I was in. Leaders in this school are very all-encompassing, learned and experienced. Because of all these challenges, I believed that we became extraordinary leaders. We have this MSUan label. We are firm, strong and determined people who have been through serious hurdles in life. I felt all of these when I became a leader. I went through holes I never thought had diameters and after winning them over, I became not just a better person but also a more effective individual. This is why I think I managed to be part of some of the country’s best leadership summits like that of Ayala’s and Aboitiz’s. I know that people here in Mindanao look up so much to those from Luzon Universities especially the powerhouses. As per my time spent with the students from these other universities, I learned that they also look forward in knowing what shots we can give because they know that we have potentials. There are many, many things we should be proud of. MSU is a battlefield – a hard-fought one.

We are indeed great beyond measure. We are just at times refusing to agree to it so we’re in an auto-pilot going down. I believe that each MSUan story is a great story. We should get away from the idea that we differ from each other. The bias, the pain, the intolerance, the history – these are what we carry as placards as we exist in the campus when what we rathercarry with us is the openness for new innovations. It is but fine to break traditions and norms if we believe that these are detrimental in our progress.

These may all sound clichés, I know. But let us get these all up! Be an active student in the campus! You can write, quiz, speak, debate, lead and do whatever you like. Just learn from the experiences and apply them. Share them to others. Then your story will pace faster and will have more meaningful twists and turns.

MSU as a battlefield is just life. It is a divine chaos worth embracing. We all will find our own symphony of lights and it is best seen, believe me, when you know you deserve the moment.#