Wonder Fall

“The fee is two thousand pesos,” the 75-year old commander said.

I managed to hide my shock through a smile. The amount was ten times the usual rate. But I was not in a usual place. I was inside the training camp of a Muslim rebel group trying to get access to a waterfall where no Christian has ever been. This remote place in North Cotabato in Mindanao, Philippines is controlled by the MNLF, a secessionist political group that has been fighting with the government since 1969 for the creation of an Islamic State.

For a chance to see this falls I camped for a night at the nearby and more popular Asik-Asik Falls, the only waterfall on earth not created by a river but by hundreds of cascades gushing from crevices on a wall of rock.

Being a huge fan of waterfalls I agreed to pay. Nine men carrying machetes joined us. One has a whole arm missing.

After crossing a corn field we were stopped by a thick wall of vegetation. The chief said that it’s been years since someone visited the place. The wall of thorny bushes and overgrown vines looked impenetrable until the men started to hack through it.

Three hours later we came face to face with the unnamed waterfall. A white column of plummeting water stood out against the lush greenery. At around 150 feet tall and 25 feet wide, the cascade cuts through a pair of expansive granite walls beautifully sculptured by nature. The surroundings were covered with wild flowers of all sorts and colors. My favorite spot was the bed of moss growing few steps from the plunge pool. It’s over three feet thick underscoring years of undisturbed growth.

While sitting on the evergreen bed the chief asked if I was satisfied with their falls.

“I’ve been wondering why I love waterfalls,” I replied. “I found the answer here. In the midst of the thundering waters, I felt peace. In the presence of my so called enemies, I felt security. Waterfalls are teaching us that despite of the chaos, there is peace.”

“Peace is not the absence of conflicts,” the one-armed man responded. “It is the courage to accept our differences. I hope we can achieve peace so our sons will grow up with complete arms. I lost one in a battle.”

He raised his only arm for a hand shake and said, “Thank you for your courage!”

We named the falls Daday after their ancestor. I printed a large poster of the falls and placed it at the registration area of Asik-Asik Falls so more Christians can discover its beauty and experience the friendliness of the Muslims.