Mount Mandara

By Alexandra Miller

I begin my treacherous journey peering up the steep rocky cliffs of the majestic Mount Mandara

Excitement courses through my veins as I take my first steps towards the top

The first of many many more to come

I struggle up the winding beaten down paths

Meandering my way over slippery rocky slopes

Grumbling uncomfortably to myself all the while

Each passing anomaly passes over me like water

Each boulder, a summit to begrudgingly conquer

With the final reserves of my energy

I pull myself up onto to the refuge of the plateau,

Completing my long and difficult climb

I am filled with wonder as I look out from my stony perch

My eyes greedily lap up the sights before me:

The vague misty masses looming like gargantuan guardians

Surveying the bountiful valleys below

The various shades greens of the ragged tree-line, as they sway in the wintry breeze

And the clear icy-blue skies above

How peaceful the scene I behold

The crunch of the icy snow beneath my boots

The whoosh of the evergreen tress below

And the symphony of noises made by the creatures that call this mount their home

How insignificant and meager the climb in comparison to the grand spectacle before me!