The Underground Lesson of a River

The Philippine’s Subterranean Underground River is one of the candidates of the New Natural Wonders of the World and I was lucky enough to have the chance to experience it last 2008. The Underground River, at that time, had made it to the top 200 list so I was a little agitated and excited to get to explore and uncover the natural wonder of the Subterranean Underground River. I was amazed. I was mesmerized. I was a new person inside. The underground river did not only offer me its wonder and beauty but also lessons in life as well.

One important lesson that I learned about life when I had my escapade at the underground river is that ‘Life is full of challenges.’ I know that this proverb had become a cliché already nowadays but life for me before my adventure was never full of challenges. My father is well-known here at our place and I could say that I was brought up not doing much to get what I wanted. But the trip to the underground river was an eye-opener for me.

Before reaching the underground river, you have to go through a lot of obstacles and challenges and that goes with life as well. As all people say about life, ‘You have to cross rivers and climb a mountain to get what you want’ and that is also how you will get to see the underground river, literally. There is an easier way, of course, to get to the underground river. You have to go around the mountain using a boat but when the weather and the tide are not so good (and it usually happens a lot), you don’t have any other option but to climb the mountain. Another lesson I’ve learned here in this adventure is that ‘using the easier way is not always the best option’. And it is a lot more fulfilling and satisfying if you worked hard for whatever you wanted.