My family spent the whole of the Deepavali holiday at Gunung Lambak. It is ok if you have not heard of the place before - we hadn't heard about it too before we got there. It is a mountain near Kluang in Johor. Not a very tall mountain - about 510m, it stands roughly 3times as tall as Bukit Timah Hill.
I was actually very apprehensive before the trip. I wasn't sure if pur bodies can take the climb. Although it is not a very tall mountain, those who have conquered it (or did not conquer it) told us that it is very formidable - with its steep slopes and all. I am not sure if we have the physique to take it on. I was particularly worried for my last two children: the youngest is only 4 and the number 2 is not used to physically straining activities - a bit of a xiao jie. I was actually prepared to bring these two down halfway if they really can't handle it, although I did not tell them that as it would Lunt their resolve.
As it turned out, some things happened as expected. There were parts of the mountain that were really discouraging. You would look straight up (at 60 degrees gradient) and can't see the end of the slope. At those points, my heart sank and I felt like backtracking. There were many junctures where I could hear is my deep breathing and nothing else. My way of coping with it is not to look up but just tell myself to put one foot ahead the other and keep repeating this step without stopping.
Well, some things also turned out unexpected in a pleasant way. My youngest not only did not have any problem with the climb, he was in fact at the head of the pack - hopping and leaping as if he was in a playground. my number 3 also surprised us by shouldering on despite being full og mud all over her clothing - she was on all-fours at some very challenging parts of the climb. We usually think of her as one that whines over the smallest discomfort. This time, she really took it all in her stride. It is nice to be pleasantly surprised by our children every now and then. It also reminds me that I should not put an artificial lid on my children's abilities all the time. Over-protection may not do them good in the long run.
As I reflect, it really feels very satisfying to have the entire family do a climb like this -together. I am reminded that such occasions may become rarer as the time passes - my oldest is already 17 and so getting him around family activities will become an increasing challenge. The fact is that it is hard to find activities that everyone in the family (ranging from 4 years old to 17' not including the parents' ages) enjoys. From this experience, mountain climbing is one such good candidate that does the job. It is nice to see that all of us enjoyed the climb and fond satisfaction together.
On hindsight, one regret is that we have not done such all-in-family-enjoy type of activity together more often. If you are a reader of this blog OECD and have young children, do take more time to do such activities with them.
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