Lonely caves and singing birds, a story

My life is not average at all, I take risks, I have adventures, I love to live dangerously. I have been exploring caves all my life and I would come across the weirdest things, but this was scary. My rope was damaged and I would have to wait for a couple of hours for my partner to get another, long enough to pull me out. I was far in the jungle, away from humanity. An unsettling feeling when your life is in an others hands.

I had never been so low in my life, the caves I had been in would sometimes get dark and wet, but this was a new low. It was pitch black, my flashlight was misbehaving and as far as I could see there were no other passageways. How had I gotten here? The funny part is that I was so set to see this cave, that turns out to be just a very deep hole in the ground, that I didn't even mind the fact that we didn't have contingency tools, how stupid of me. How ironic.

The walls were moldy and slippery, it was pitch dark and my flashlight didn't reach the furthest corners, so I could not see it all, but what I saw wasn't impressive, dark stone with water droplets falling and disappearing in the ground, no vegetation, not that anything could survive this far down in the ground. No life. Just a black nothing. What a waste.

I hugged myself feeling chilly and lonely, at this point and time I was alone. To be fair I was usually a lone soul in the world, but I didn't mind, I loved to be independent, but this... This wasn't loneliness of free will. The rational part of my mind told me to calm down, I had been through similar stuff, haven't I? But the other half was worried, I looked at my wrist watch and it informed me that it had been 3 hours. The walk to the car was almost two hours and then the closest city that could provide ropes was at least an hour of driving. This was just the beginning in this cave.

I opened my backpack and pulled out a protein bar and a glow-stick, the flashlight didn't work even when I changed the batteries. I had gone around the cave twice already, but I had to keep myself busy. This time I touched every stone, every part of the mold on the wall, I had no hope, but my mind still dreamed. Of course there was no reason to, there was nothing to find, the cave was a big round formation with no additional pathways. I dropped down on the moist ground and covered my eyes.

---

It was five hours now, I took my first sip of water since being here, dehydration was not my friend. I looked up in the air where, what it looked like from here, was a tiny hole. The sun was signaling midday, I could see it right though the trees, for a second it provided a little bit of brightens in the otherwise dark prison I was in. A bird sung. The world outside seemed so welcoming now, but because of the slippery walls I couldn't use my tools to try and climb out.

The bird again. It had a loud voice, a very beautiful one. When I get out, I am going to take a vacation, maybe bird watching should become my new profession.

---

I get startled awake, it is dark and for a second I get disoriented. Where am I? Oh. It has been 6 hours, my companion should be back soon. It is that voice again that wakes me, the bird, this time it seems even louder. I know I am frowning, I shouldn't be hearing it, I get up and brush off the dirt from my pants. I hear it again, but this time it is accompanied with a movement. Like a bolt something shoots out from the left side of the cave and goes straight up, out of the cave. I am startled. I feel like an idiot.

I didn't check the higher parts! I grab a new glow-stick and move rapidly to where the bird came from and sure enough, there it is, a passage right above my head, easy to miss, as it was dark, but I still kick myself. I should have not only checked the lover parts. Th passage is wide enough, I throw my bag in it and pull myself up. After the excitement passes I realize there is nothing much to see here either, the same walls, the same drippy water.

But the bird had to come from somewhere so I move on. The passage gets narrow now and I have to leave my bag behind, the walls gradually change, they look like human hands have done some work here, and I get excited. There are stairs up, it feels tight. My earlier worries seem centuries ago. I turn around a corner and the the narrow passageway unexpectedly turns into a huge cave, I am at least ten meters above the ground and thankfully don't fall as the stairs end abruptly. My heart is pounding with adrenaline.

It is beautiful, a natural waterfall flowing and forming a lake, and white sand on the ground, but the weirdest thing is the greens coming out of the opposite wall. No sun, yes vegetation. That is unexpected, and so, so beautiful. And then there is a breeze, that means exit. I decide to go back for the short rope I have in my backpack. I hesitate to leave, fearing it to be just a dream.

Then halfway back I realize someone is calling my name. I start running and grab my bag on the way. I have to slow down, it is getting dark again.

-- Sonia, SONIA!?

He came back for me!