Question Of The Week 10.5: Share A Story Of Your Favourite Nature Experience- The Mysterious Mountain And The Water

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One of the things the ecotrain question does to me is turning my reflection cap on. The moment I read about ecotrain questions I begin to reflect and think about what I have done in the past, articulate these words together by using good English, suggesting how to make it good, and the best way to express it.
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There is a mountain in my village. This mountain is one of the unique mountains in my village because of its usefulness.
The name of the village is Okwa community. The mountain was named after the village, it is called Okwa Mountain.
The mountain is approximately 5km away from the village. But right now, houses and hotels have been built around the mountain.
This mountain is very big and to walk round the mountain takes hours. The mountain contains big trees and shrubs. water and land. This water is very clean because it comes out of the rock. I love drinking this water because it is the best water in my village: here i am in the city, never find water as odourless and tasteless as Okwa mountain's water.
There are 2 calabashes there to fetch the water. Hence, you cannot use anything to fetch the water except the calabash and you cannot also drink from the calabash. You have to bring something to fetch the water inside.
You cannot watch from the side of the river; you are just allowed to fetch this water and leave immediately without wasting time.
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There are certain times this water would be flowing from the top of the mountain down to the mountain.
There was a day when my papa and I went to this mountain, because my father went there to relax. There is a relaxing place on the top of the mountain, far from where there is water.
My father and I went there to get water; on getting there, there was no water in the place, it was dried.
One thing that baffled me most was that, in that place there was no hole inside the mountain that brought water. I asked my father, “Daddy, where is this water coming from since there is no hole in the mountain?”.
My father said, “only Almighty GOD knows where the water is coming from. This is the second time the water has been dry in history, the last time that it was dry was about 200 years ago during the time of my grandfather. It was during the war between Olimu kingdom and Ohara kingdom. I think something is about to happen in the village that was the reason the river dried.
“During the war between Olimu and Ohara, this is where the whole villagers were living, eating, drinking, and playing. It is a rescued place for the villagers and anyone that was in the mountain was saved from death because no opponent warrior can come near the mountain, no arrow, no weapon can reach there.
At the bottom of the mountain, you can watch, swim and play, but from the source which is the top of mountain, no one is allowed to do anything there except to fetch the water for drinking.
“About 1000 warriors died, while pursuing villagers to the mountain; No villagers or warriors in the villages fought against them. As they were trekking, they fell down one-by-one and died instantly”.
There is also a hole in one part of the mountain, but it cannot hold more than 100 people. My father told me that the hole was to hide the king and elders in the community during the war because of the coldness during the night.
though, he told me our four-fathers lived in the whole.
But after seven days of no water in the mountain, my friends and I went there to play, because it is a playground for children also: lo and behold, there was heavy water flowing from the top of the mountain to down without rainfall in the village. It was so heavy that even we, children that do swim from the bottom, could not swim.
The way the water was making noise so loud that we were scared. Though we are not alone because there are many people on the mountain. It was a day; no one who was not a citizen of the village by birth was allowed to near the water. Because, if such a person goes near the water, the water will take such a person away and will never see the person again.
It is a mountain full of nature and herbs; there are different kinds of herbs in the mountain. Even people from far places come to get herbs from the mountain.
The last time I visited home, I saw that the relaxation area was renovated, there were chairs and tables under the trees.
The rules there are: no smoking, no drinking of alcohol, and no loitering.
If you take what does not belong to you, such a person will not be able to come down from the mountain unless he/she returns what he/she stole. If a visitor stole anything from the mountain, such a person may pay with his/her life. Such visitors will just fall and die instantly.
Hence, if you are a visitor, they will you ‘don’t take anything that is not belong to you in this mountain, the result is instant death’.
There is a serious cold from evening till the next morning. During this time, the temperature is very cold: by 4:00pm, due to the temperature, the old people would start moving to their respective homes.

WHY THE MOUNTAIN IS SO IMPORTANT TO THE PEOPLE?
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• A place of protection: Our fathers believe that the mountain is a place for protection, they believe that no matter the war, the moment they find their way to the mountain, their lives are secured. They believed no harm could come near them in the mountain. They are well protected.

• A place of peace and ease: this is what most of the people in the world are searching for. No wonder I saw many people there, even people from other states came there and spent days in the mountain.
  Most of the people in the village, especially old people love to be there, that is their place of relaxation during the day. They believed whatever you are going through, the moment you step into the mountain, you will surely find peace; all the anxiety and worry will be gone.
  They believe you will definitely find answers and solutions to your questions.

A place of healing: there are different types of herbs in the mountain, people from far places come to the mountain for herbs to cure certain illnesses and diseases. A few examples of illness and diseases that have been healed are epilepsy, diabetes, and many rare illnesses I don’t know. I was brought up with herbs: I have never been admitted to hospital since I was born. Though, I do go to the hospital for a check-up every 6 months.
The only sickness I have suffered was malaria and typhoid, and that was 2 years ago. Though, I do order the herbs from my village since I am living far away from my state.
Our belief as a villager that was brought up from the village is that we don't fall sick. and if we are sick, we will surely be healed by the herbs and the water.
This belief works for 95% of us. sometime, if i called my mother or friends that am having headache, the response they gave me was "we don't fall sick"
According to the history I heard, when there was no hospital to deliver a baby, most pregnant women were taken to the mountain to deliver, especially those that had obstructed labor.
Up till date, some villagers have not deviated from that belief, they are still delivering babies in the mountain. They believed that the moment I step on the mountain, I will surely deliver. Some pregnant women in the village, while they are in labor do say it unconsciously ‘take me to Okwa mountain’.

• Historical place: there is a festival we celebrate every 10 years. It is a big festival where people that have never come to the village for the past 9 years come because of that festival. The festival lasted for seven days: on the seventh day of the festival, which is the last day, all the people will go to the mountain for prayers and that was the mountain they will end the festival.
• It is a fun festival with different colors, different people have to rub or sprinkle you with different colors.
  You don’t have to be annoyed or angered with anyone.
  While you are in the mountain on the last day of the festival, you will have to pray for what you want. It is believed that you will surely get it. But don’t take the color to the water source which is at the top of the mountain.