Waterfalls are the place you see the wonder of nature in all of its glory. Rivers or streams flow over precipices or steep inclines to create truly awesome sight. For some people, they are a source of peace and tranquility, rest and relaxation. Simply seeing these structures lend the mind to drift away into a slow, pleasant state of Nirvana.
From early childhood, I felt alive whenever I was lucky enough to be in the presence of a waterfall. I sensed then, as I do now, that the places where the waters cascade over the edge and plunge into the deep, hidden, mysterious caves, were a sight unlike anything else on earth.
Magazines that showed pictures of Angel Falls, Victoria Falls and Niagara Falls helped to nurture a feeling of being in the presence of magical monsters, each one taller, wider and more spectacular than the other.
I saw my first waterfall, Blue Basin, when I was about eight-years-old. I was mesmerized by the sheer beauty of all the things that surrounded me. In the tropics, waterfalls have moist green foliage, trees that clung to the side of cliff walls, and mist that rose upward and outward in hypnotic fashion, all while glued to the air around it.
This waterfall was set in the middle of a lush-green tabernacle, a unique smell filled my lungs with a newness that ushered in a gush of fresh life;
like the feeling of inhaling air at the moment it was born.
Above the water’s surface, where the liquid turned to gas, the trees were green in color, not the same hue found in savannah grass or fruit trees, but a deep, thick shade, each leaf seemingly overburdened with chlorophyll.
I later found out that this particular shade is due to the fact trees need to absorb sunlight in places where they were not exposed to the direct rays. The abundance of life-giving cells allowed these trees to thrive; a phenomenon that served to add an ominous depth to the look of the ravine.
From that day onward I have been transfixed by waterfalls, and I soon realized I was not the only one fascinated with it. In fact, there were many others who felt the same way.
If you have a story about waterfalls and would like to share it with us, please submit it on this blog and I will be happy to pass it along to our readers.
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