As I stood atop the hill, catching my breath, I turned to take in the view that stretched endlessly before me. The lake I had admired moments ago now lay far below, its calm waters blending into the twilight. But from here, a whole new world unfolded—the vast expanse of rice fields shimmering in the fading sunlight, their flooded surfaces mirroring the sky’s last hues. The distant town, once a faint glow on the horizon, now seemed alive with scattered lights twinkling through the evening haze. The air was cooler up here, carrying the faint rustle of leaves and the distant hum of life winding down for the night. In that moment, I felt both small and infinite, a quiet observer in nature’s grand spectacle.
