My journey to and in Bario didn’t went as planned nor as expected. It was completely different, well at least at for a certain period of time of the project.
31st July 2014
Taking off on a turbo propeller plane to Bario from Miri
International Airport on a clear Thursday morning, my mind was filled with
excitement and joy. I could hear my heart pounding on my chest from the
anticipation of what lies ahead of me as the plane took from the tarmac and
glided through the fresh uncontaminated Sarawak air.
The propeller plane made a rather smooth landing when given
the size of the aircraft is relatively small thanks to both the pilots who were
piloting our journey. Of course, being the gen-Y kids we had to pull out our
cameras for quick shots upon arrival in Bario Airport. Walking through the
airport arrival gate, we were greeted by a number of locals who were very
friendly and even more welcoming to us. Rest of the day had been delightful
with meeting people and chatting with them. It was also the day that I had one
of the longest naps, could have been hours but I’m not sure.
1st August 2014
Woken up by the cold breeze of Bario air around 5.30am, I
scuffled my blanket and wrapped my whole body into it creating a barrier from
the cold to contain my body heat. I was never a fan of cold places but I
thought, “This is not bad, I’ve gone through temperatures 18 degrees below
freezing”. Barely an hour went past I could hear the footsteps of people
walking around the house. The wooden frame and floors creeks and echoes the
sound of steps whenever someone walks. The longhouse is waking up, I decided
I should join them and get cleaned. I made the biggest mistake of my life, I
took a handful of water running from the tap and splashed it on my face. Oh
boy, let me tell you how shocked I was when the ice cold water hit my face, I
was so shocked that I literally jumped a step back and shrieked.
Oh, I forgot to mention one very important note; in fact it
is the reason for this post. My right foot. A small bite I obtained from a
diving trip in Tioman island had developed into a wound and got infected
somewhere in the journey from Tioman to Bario, I’ve had slight pain ever since
getting into Miri but I did not let that halt my excitement. Unfortunately, it
kept getting severe and started to swell.
So, the journey back to the footsteps of Prayer Mountain was
a bit painful and my feet was aching every step I took. I didn’t want to worry
anyone, but the whole batch showed so much concern towards me. I told myself,
“Pain is the weakness leaving the body” and kept continuing the journey.
Fate was not on my side that day, as soon as I reached the
foot of the mountain, my right foot was swollen. A visit to the local clinic
soon after that and I was attended by a friendly doctor who chatted throughout
the diagnosis. I was advised to rest and take antibiotics for next 3 days and
see the progress.
2nd August 2014
I had gone to bed all covered up with blanket and I woke up
with the blanket lying effortlessly still on my body. Grabbed the tip of my
blanket and moved it sideways to examine the condition of my foot and to my
horror, my foot swell a lot bigger. The first steps I took on that morning
became a daunting task as the pain was terrible in comparison to the days
before. My day was never the same, I was forced to limit my movement and my
activities. Although I was feeling disappointed with myself for not being a
productive member, everyone of batch 3 showed so much compassion and gave
endless care just to make me feel better. I was given priority to take the
shower early, to have best seat and even to be the first person to take the
food.
3rd August 2014
Waking up and examining my foot again to find no
improvement, it was still as swollen as the day before. Same excruciating pain
and limitation to my activities for the day.
Tepuq Sinah Rang who was our homestay host has been keeping a close eye on my condition and has been very worried. She said prayers before we had our dinner and included me in the prayer to have my foot recovered as soon as possible and so did everyone. I was already moved by the time and effort that everyone spared to have me recovered and feel healthy again.
What happened that night, really moved my heart. Tepuq Sinah Rang had few other tepuqs called in after dinner to have prayer just for me. “That is very thoughtful of everyone. Why would anyone spend their weekend night for someone who they only knew for 2 days?” But these people did, all the tepuqs came to have a get well soon prayer for me together with my beloved batch 3 mates. It was such a heartwarming moment for me, I nearly teared.
THANK YOU TEPUQ.
THANK YOU ALICIA, DOMINIC, AI JIN, YEEWAN, YAN CHUAN,
CHARU, LUKE, RHON, DANIEL, KIT MAY, JAYNE, THARUNNIA.
#BATCH3ISTHEBEST
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