Gocta Waterfall plunged from a height of 771-m into the forest.
From where I sat, the leaping waterfall appeared like a long lock of white hair draping over the shoulder of a mermaid.
Beneath was thick amazon cloud forest; hot and humid. Gentle morning breeze caressed my sweaty skin as if blowing air on my wounds. The air smelled like a mix of vegetation, moisture, and soil. Other than the occasional chirping of birds and buzzing of mosquitoes, all I could hear was the soft white noise of the waterfall.
Big birds glided elegantly in the air much like a tightrope walker who is straightening and locking arms with ever-so-slight arm movement.
“Why do birds fly high above in circles?” I asked my mother. “May you also be like one of them!” she replied.
Decades later, sitting atop a hill, I pondered my life. What happened to all those efforts and talents? What was I looking for in this jungle? Being a wanderer or pursuing my destiny?
After sometime, I stood up to set up the camera on tripod at the edge of the cliff. Looking through the viewfinder, I noticed a smudge on the lens. While still lost in thoughts, I stepped in front of the camera to clean it. My right foot landed on the plants at the edge. I stumbled but regained balanced. When I looked down, my heart came into my mouth. It was hundreds of meters of vertical fall into the forest. I left the camera on the tripod, sat on the ground and held my head in hands. This could have been it!
Late at night, I turned and changed sides in the bed.
As the night grew darker, my eyes began to close, but the intensity of my fears grew upon me; falling hundreds of meters; life flashing before my eyes; my body twisting and turning in the air in super slow-motion.
When my eyes opened, I found myself in the lap of my mother. It was a sunny winter Friday afternoon on the roof of our old house. She had bathed me, made me wear blue Shalwar Kameez, and put kohl in my eyes. She gently combed my hair and whispered to me, “Meray Khawaabon Ki Tabeer (you are the realisation of my dreams)!”
In a flash, my spirit left the cage of my body and soared high, much higher than any waterfall in the world, making circles in the sky!
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