“You’re so close! So close!” I murmured to myself, “Almost there. Just a little farther, then you can be done with these stupid steps, ” I was tired and hungry. Food was screaming my name and my only thought was to get off the mountain in Yangshuo. I swatted away brush and loose tree branches. The air was hot and sticky with moisture and humidity. Sweat trickled down my back. The “steps” I was climbing down were still slick with the morning’s rain.

Step after step I took, careful not to slip. I constantly took sips from my water bottle not wanting to become dehydrated. My breath came in large pants and I looked for Kaitlin and the rest of my group behind me. I stopped to wait for the rest of my group.

We were almost at the bottom, the end was near in sight. In a few minutes time, I heard the chatter of my fellow classmates and carried on walking. Step, by step, by step.

“Hey, Kaitlin!” I called behind me, not looking at where I was stepping. “AAAAAHHHHHHHH!” A scream tore from my throat as my foot fell straight through nothing. Leaves and vines and berries assaulted me as I fall. Panicked, I grasped for anything that could slow my fall. Finally, I grabbed a sturdy piece of vegetation and my hands tightened around the thorny vine.

“HELP!” I managed to squeak out of my trembling body.

“Emersyn!” Kaitlin cried out alarmed. “Where are you? Are you okay?”

“I’m okay, I think. I don’t know where I am though, ” I shrieked back. I realize what I automatically said was true. I had no idea where I was. I was too afraid to turn around with risk of falling again. I only stared up, up at the gaping hole where my body fell. I quickly assessed myself in my upside down position. Nothing seemed to hurt. I didn’t see blood. I could still speak. “Kaitlin! Hurry!” I called up, not only to Kaitlin, but to anyone who was around. My hands gripped tightly to the vine, my knuckles white and holding tight, but I could feel my grip slipping and the plant slowly breaking.

I heard someone call out to Mr. Muir. Then, I heard heavy footsteps round the corner and down the steps. Strong hands grasped me and pulled me up from my feeble position on the ground. I stood up, shaky and afraid.

“Emersyn, are you all right?” Mr. Muir asked.

“I think I’m okay.” I said unsure, my whole body trembling. Then, I tried to laugh, but it came out a gurgled moan. I quickly cut the laugh short. When I looked at myself, I was covered in mud, dirt, leaves, branches, berries, but surprisingly no blood. Mr. Muir also assessed me looking for injuries. We both found none except for a few scratches.

“Wow!” Mr. Muir commented. “You fell a long ways.”

I looked up at the place where I had fallen. “Wow, ” was all I could say. I was shocked that I had fallen that far and hadn’t broken or cut anything. Mr. Muir was in the same shock.

“You probably fell five or six feet, Emersyn!” Came Mr. Muir’s astonished voice.

“Emersyn!” Kaitlin’s frantic voice cried out. “Oh my gosh! Are you okay? How did you fall? Is that where you fell?” Kaitlin’s questions came out in a rush, all attached to one breath.

“I’m okay. I think I fell because I wasn’t looking and I just stepped right off the mountain. There were a ton of vines and brush covering the path so I thought I was stepping on stone, but I ended up just stepping on plants.” I told Kaitlin. Kaitlin simply looked at me like I was a living miracle, her mouth agape.

“Do you think you can keep walking?” Mr. Muir asked me.

“Yeah, I think so, ” I replied, walking about as fast as a snail to the bottom of the mountain. Luckily, the bottom wasn’t far and everybody else was waiting for us. When I reunited with my group, everyone looked at my dirty appearance and questions exploded from the group. I simply shrugged, my universal sigh for “I’ll tell you later.” At that point, I was simply thanking God that I was all right. It was simply a miracle.