Unforgetable memories of September 16..

It's just started to cold outside and the air started to breeze calmly,
It's just giving everyone the essence of the coming christmas.
Lately, I have just turned 24 and it just felt nothing so special,
Yet for everyday living, I have just noticed many things had changed.

Yeah,  remember it right that tragic event happen to me way back in highschool,
It was a cool sunny day of September and the breeze that I can still feel until now.
We're on a backyard camp in school and it was really a great day indeed.
We chat and share a lots of things while preparing for the campfire event as opening,
With close friends, I can't actually go along though they tried to cheer me up to join;
Yet I have this character way back then, that I am not that opened to all.
I prefer to listened them and playing around other that I am definitely serious type.

Even though I am like this, I got a lots of friends in my classroom and even in other sections;
Besides I was also one of the known student who is active in school events like quiz bees;
I am also an active student council in the campus that's why I been quite known in school.
I have this casual friend way since elementary named John Dave B. who not really closed to me,
Got no clue why but we usually chat and exchange Hellos yet not really that closed cause somehow,
I am actually misunderstood him, since then in elementary.

To make the story not to long, we just started to talked that night before the campfire started.
It was a very meaningful talked between him and I, I just couldn't believe that he will be doing it.
It's kind of missing him even if he's in front of me and we're talking of something weird event,
An event that could not imagine to happen too soon after that chatting with him..

I can't remember the topic but I remember the feeling of losing someone I already treasured.
It's kind a weird moment especially after the campfire he just left me with an unexplainable
And dramatic type of behavior that he just left me with certain emotions of emptiness within.
At the room where I and my classmates had stayed there I tried to changed my mood.
I tried to forget the disturbed feeling that we had been with John Dave that night.

We got teasing and bullies with each other and naughty things around before getting to bed;
With my closed friends in our rooms, laughs and noises started to boom in our place..
It's seems like no one like to sleep, cause it only happens rarely.

So for the whole night, I guess most of the students who joined the backyard camping were not having a good rest or sleep for most of us are doing something to keep us awake for the whole event.


Early morning at 4am; many already packed their things and preparing for the hiking that will be very interesting for me since it will be my favorite among the whole events. Even in taking a bath, many are still playing and bullying with each other. I may say it was really that fun..


5am we gathered and are given instruction to be in a group for our own safety, but many are not listening to the directions given to us for most of us are actually very excited for the hiking...


While on the road to the target area, the boys are definitely in a state of super exaggeration that anything that be seen along the road have given a scary story especially by those who are living near to the locations we had having a hike..


So while having the feeling of fun, I forget many things to keep in mind when going to a place that you had never had been yet.. It will be my first time to step on that place, the so-called "kabang falls" which I've heard a lot of eerie stories while going to the place since many are talking about the place cause as they described, It was actually a very beautiful place to go..


When were already about a few meters from the place, there go my friend John Dave, who take a rest in the overlooking area of the city, and it captures my amazement of the view I am looking that time. we both laugh when we catch each other saying "WOW!". After that we then have started to talk of few things until a young boy just join our conversation and told us to be keen enough and be safe in going to kabang falls, and he shared that many already lost their lives in the area of fantasy as they in the locals cause of the beauty the kabang falls has..


Suddenly, John Dave told me something which I can't recall already cause of the time passed already.. I then told him to be the first to go down the hill as we reach  the top of the hill. since the falls is in the other side of hill, other's call it mountain since its already tiring to go up..
While going to the place I discovered that the place are having the flower planting and most of it are roses and tulips.. It amaze us who are new to the place since it was really very fresh and the breeze was very cool, it was around 8.30 in the morning that time.


As we reach the place many of us didn't expect to see the heart formed falls and the very impressive falling of water that gives a different serenity to the place, also what makes the falls so impressive and fantastic is that it has this cave near the falling of water which looks like a resting place to whoever reach that area and the very impressive looking balete tree which looks like a palace guard..


It's definitely a very nice scenery, while most of us are amaze, someone in the group jump to the very calm water that seems like calling us to go swimming.. I touch the water and the water was really that cold and its feels very tempting to jump and swim, yet I was just immobilized for the stunning place, that I like to look and have the details be captured in my mind for the very very beautiful place that I had gone that time. It's serenity and quietness gives more than anything I like to experience then. I sat down to the side of the hill which encloses the area and keep its very impressive beauty together with the long and large bamboos and trees.

While I'm very busy watching the place and got this moment of relaxing, some of the group swim in the falls, and then the loudness of their voice and laughs disturbed the serenity of the area. I was then shocked when one of them hurriedly  swim going to the side of the falls and the others were just laughing at him cause his snot had bubbled while his swim. We are about 8 that time, cause of our group stay in the top where the complex is located, while the eight of us had reach the area cause we believe the place will be the stopover of the hiking and thus someone whom living to the place is leading us to the area who also suggested the place and also one of the trusted boyscout by our teacher.

While everyone is laughing of what happen to one of those who swim, suddenly John Dave said that his tired and then the drama started, Butch who happen the lead of the group was one who swim with John Dave and the other 2, he was very near to Dave so he tried to save but what happened is that they both go sinking, and so we decided to have the man to man chain, since we haven't seen any rope to save Dave and Butch. As we are getting near, Butch had able to save himself so we tried to reach Dave, as we already reach Dave, the place we are standing suddenly collapsed that brought us all to the deep part and I was on the third position of the man to man chain, I was not capable to swim that time and also most of us indeed don't know how to swim. The calm water begun to rush and get angry that its very hard to take one by one out of the water.. Until I started to sink deeper, I lost air little by little as I rattled to get help from my group.. While under the muddy and angry water, I remember my mother who was never able to see me before i got to the camping, I was afraid I will be get scolded when she will knew the news I am in a tragic moment. Out of nowhere i tried to reach until I able to touch something and i tried to swim going near to the thing I touch until i discovered that it was John Dave.


He was half seated on the bottom of the water when I embrace him that time, cause thinking I will be save cause I really don't know how to swim that time. Until I feel very tired and and hardly to breath air, I am in pained that time already and my body started to swirl with the current of the water coming from the falling water.. and its getting darker and darker, until I step into the sand, and then I realized to jump and that is what I did. I tried to reach the top and move my legs and arms like crouching the water, and I then reach the top of the water I've seen my group sitting the side of the falls, waiting for someone to go out from the deep, but because of tiredness and drank to much water, I sink again, but before I totally sink I seen someone running to rescue, so i tried to go back to the top to breath but i feel so tired already but I still i tried to grab anything until something i felt moving so I grab and hug the moving thing, until I lost my presence. Seems like I was in a deep sleep, cause the first thing I discovered is that my friend and some of classmates are on my side and helping me to regained the strength, they asked me if I ever had the chance to know what location John Dave cause the rescuers are still trying to save him but they not able to locate what part of the falls he is located. But I feel like I'm dreaming and my thoughts are still restarting to boot.. Then I stand up and get a stone and throw it to the falls and then someone who is a resident in the area tried to catch it where it will land and there, he found Dave who is already lying and half of the body is getting engulf-ted in the cave under the falls.

I then realized the whole things when John Dave's body was pull out from the water.. I know how it feels like loosing someone you started to like and become a more  closer friend..