" There is a pleasure in the pathless wood,
There is a rapture on the
lonely shore,
There is society, where none intrudes,
By the deep sea,
and music in its roar;
I love not man the less, but nature more. "
I was sitting right in front the dome tent, under the dim light of a flashlight over my head, staring at my friend's rusty stove with its blue flame and an aluminum mug on it. I felt tired after the long journey walking across the forest and struggling when trying to walk against the stream of the river of Kalipancur. But when the strong smell of babah kacamata black coffee rising up from the inside of the mug, the feeling of tiredness was gone all of sudden. It was really relaxing. The magical and aromatic fragrance of the coffee brought me a feeling of comfortable bed with a warm tight blanket covered all my body.
It was a night at Karangbawang, a village near Kalipancur, where my friends and I had planned to do a survey for our organization's agenda. We stepped into this place nearly after the sun had just fallen down in its nest, left its warmth and the sweet orange color in the west sky. That was a night where all of us gathered around under the stars. That was a night of stories and laughter, the sweetest Saturday night my friends and I have ever had. The night when all the business of our routine should be forgotten for a second. Spent our whole night talking about anything that came out from our mind, laughing, and even singing every song that was played from the mp3 player, with our tents surrounded by the trees and the dark of the night, and a sweet light of the half moon shone over all of the creatures below it. It felt like a holiday and it was just perfect!
It was a night at Karangbawang, a village near Kalipancur, where my friends and I had planned to do a survey for our organization's agenda. We stepped into this place nearly after the sun had just fallen down in its nest, left its warmth and the sweet orange color in the west sky. That was a night where all of us gathered around under the stars. That was a night of stories and laughter, the sweetest Saturday night my friends and I have ever had. The night when all the business of our routine should be forgotten for a second. Spent our whole night talking about anything that came out from our mind, laughing, and even singing every song that was played from the mp3 player, with our tents surrounded by the trees and the dark of the night, and a sweet light of the half moon shone over all of the creatures below it. It felt like a holiday and it was just perfect!
There, I found the words of Lord Byron came to be true. It was more than a feeling of joy and peacefulness when sometimes I was sitting alone, facing the darkness of the forest and the sound of the night. I heard some night birds singing, some chats of insects among the grasses, and even some strange sounds that flew into my ears, mixed together with other sounds in the darkness. All the sounds were the music of the night, the symphony of the woods. I shared all my feeling with my friends. Sometimes I asked them to be quiet to listen to the sound of the wind. And sometimes, on purpose, we turned all the light off to enjoy the beautiful view of the night sky with the stars scattered all around it. There was a kind of magic that we found in the middle of the night among the trees. The magic that we would never find in the city with its light and even the noise pollution.
The night was getting higher as we were running out of things to be discussed. Some friends decided to end their involvement in our laughter. Others laid under the beautiful sky that night. They wanted to get some rest after the long journey. However, there were some friends who decided not to fall asleep. I set the mp3 player into lower volume, and brought new topic to be discussed with my two friends. But it didn't take long time, all the sacred things we discussed came to an end as my two friends closed their eyes and had really tight sleep.
The night was getting higher as we were running out of things to be discussed. Some friends decided to end their involvement in our laughter. Others laid under the beautiful sky that night. They wanted to get some rest after the long journey. However, there were some friends who decided not to fall asleep. I set the mp3 player into lower volume, and brought new topic to be discussed with my two friends. But it didn't take long time, all the sacred things we discussed came to an end as my two friends closed their eyes and had really tight sleep.
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The following morning, the birds were singing loudly and happily, it made the whole place felt like a paradise. Some birds flew from one tree to another, and others were chatting with their friends. A new great day to face had come. The sun was brightly shining over our tents. It was another thing that I love to see the sun shone through the trees, created a kind of natural curtain to filter the sunlight which caused some places stayed dark when the light couldn't reach some places that hidden behind the trees. What a great day!
However, I couldn't just sit on my butt and enjoy the atmosphere with a glass of hot chocolate in my hand. I needed to wake up. My friends and I had to pack our bags and prepare everything for our main purpose of being there. We had to start that day with another great adventure!
However, I couldn't just sit on my butt and enjoy the atmosphere with a glass of hot chocolate in my hand. I needed to wake up. My friends and I had to pack our bags and prepare everything for our main purpose of being there. We had to start that day with another great adventure!
