Paintings of the Almighty

A dedication to my Maker, friends who couldn't join me that day, and friends who are now over seas. Also, I dedicate this to Poh Lynn's father whom I met on my way down from the hill.

It was a gloomy morning, about a week or two after the hazy days in KL. "The haze is finally over! I need to climb! No matter rain or shine, I need to go outdoors!" Why am I so gungho? Cuz I knew that the haze is going to be back... question is, when? So I called a few friends (only one managed to join me), and told them we will be starting our climb at 6.30 am. And so, we did...

Date: Sunday, 11 Nov 2006
Time: 6.56am onwards...

Mid way to my favourite spot of the hill... We could hardly see the Klang valley... The fog kept getting thicker and thicker...

I looked back to take a peep at the east side of the hill. Lo and behold...

I was mezmerized by its beauty. The sun was rising fast. We hurried to our favourite spot, where we can get the best view of God's art. When we arrived, the sun was a little too high up, but the view was still 'Jaw dropping'!

We chose a spot and sat on the flatest rock we could find. The morning breeze quickly swept our sweat away, as we rested and feast our eyes on the beauty of the hill. You are looking east of the hill. On the right, is KL city, and on the left is the Klang Gates damn. At the horizon is Pahang.

The breeze that came from the north gathered dense fog from the Pahang rain forest, and was trapped at the hills. It became so thick that it overflowed into the other side of the hill. We could feel the chill of the water droplets that made up the fog as they gently brushed against our cheeks when they passed us by.

When we started our journey, we thought it would rain. The clouds that we thought would bring rain was actually a very thick layer of fog that had engulved the entire Klang valley and major parts of the Pahang rain forest. As the sun rose higher, the clouds from the stratosphere onwards dispersed and revealed the blue sky.

The rain forest soon revealed its crowns as the fog dispersed.

The fog soon achieved a level of equilibrium as it spilled itself over the hill to fill up the entire Klang valley.

The scenary slowly transformed into one that resembled the limestone hills of Guangxi province, China. However, this is a granite hill. Such view is rare and only appear several times in a year (during the rainy seasons). I thank God for that day...

I could hardly spot KL city accept for the distinctive KL tower and Petronas tower.

We would sit there the whole morning, but I had to rush back to reality - the hustle and bustle of life... On our way down, the glitters from a spider web caught my eyes.

... and there were more... I was hoping for a bigger one so that I could take a good shot. ... and I actually found one! This spider is called a Signature Spider, or Argiope sp. of the Araneidae family.

It was when I was taking the photograph of this particular arachnid that I met Poh Lynn's dad. I should have taken a photo with Mr. Ng, but I was rushing down...

Another jewel caught my attention!

We then hiked through the lower parts of the hill, where it was dense with vegetation. The ray from the morning sun penetrated the thick foliage and lighted the jungle trail with a beautiful glow...

... which interestingly reminded me of a verse in the Bible, Psalm 119:105 "Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path".

That morning itself, I felt like I have travalled to several places around the world, although I have only climbed up the back yard of Taman Melawati - Bukit Tabur.

I must say that this is is one of the many show cases of God's magnificent paintings. It never ceased to amaze me.

At first, I was a little hesitant to show the photos I took. I feared that more people would frequent this place, and as a result, the entire hill could risk being damaged by tourists. People might come and take whatever that might appeal to them, and leave their garbage behind.

I am not being selfish about this place. I very much would like to share its beauty with the others (hence, this post), but are they willing to share its beauty with other people?

Already, there is enough damage caused by some climbers now. There are huge rocks disappearing from the hill, and plants being dug up from the soil. There are even grafiti on some of the rock walls. There are garbage scattered along the trail.

Do these people actually think forward before doing anything like this? I figure they did but just couldn't care less. If everyone who frequents there takes a stone, or a plant, very soon, the entire hill would be totally destroyed in time to come. The implications could be larger than you and I could imagine!

However, I have decided to publish the pictures in hope that those who sees them, will learn to love the place and conserve it. Bukit Tabur is a priceless comodity, and it is one of the last few natural wonders standing in KL city. I would call such place a natural gymn, a place to destress, a place of inspiration, and a painting of the Almighty. Naturally, it also serves as part of a natural reservoir as well as a baricade to the Klang gates dam. It acts as a natural protection for our water source.

We now live in a fast moving world, where nothing last as long as it used to be. Parents seldom pass anything down to their children anymore as most of the items can be purchased with money. The sense of conservation is not as strong as it used to be in our society of this era.

No doubt, clean air, natural resources and natural wonders, in a way can be bought with money. However, unlike handphones, clothes or cars (a.k.a. perishables), we cannot produce them. If we lose them, we lose them forever! As such, we cannot treat natural resources like we would treat the perishables! If we continue with our current consumer attitute, we will have nothing left for the generations to come.

As a child, I cherish what my parents gave me. As a parent, I would like to give my children something to cherish. Showing our children such natural wonders is something worthwhile giving. Though I'm not a father yet, but I would like to see my future generation experiencing a piece of God's wonderful painting.

Therefore, I urge you readers out there, the next time you plan to go to Bukit Tabur, or anywhere at all, go with a heart to conserve! The earth, no matter which part of it we are at, is our home. Protect it!

Gen2:15 "Then the Lord God took the man and put him in the garden of Eden to tend and keep it"