we should all...

Take a moment and think about how lucky we are. Most of you who read this blog are much like myself, though we don't think its true, many people see us as outdoor extremists. Even my own family thinks I'm a bit insane at time (they are probably true). Another climber has passed on while trying to attempt to summit Mt. Everest, a challenge that is no joke. In the same light, a friend of mine from the climbing gym, Brenda Walsh, summitted and says she didn't think it was all that hard. She, however, is one of RMI's most accomplished guides and is borderline superhuman with her abilties. So what is my point? In regards to the climber who died just a mere 1,000 feet from the summit of everest, Sir Edmund Hilary (my hero) says, "I think the whole attitude toward climbing Mount Everest has become rather horrifying. The people just want to get to the top," he told a Kiwi newspaper. And it is true. If you set out to do some of the things that "we" the outdoor community do, just to conquer a mountain or feel more superior then you are not doing it for the right reasons. The mountains, ocean, and mother earth are always going to be more powerful. Now I'm not saying that we don't get satisfaction from skinning up a new route, or sending that 5.11 we've been working on for so long, but there has to be a sense of humilty that goes along with it. I have seen enough crazy things in my 24 short years to know that none of us are invincible. There are always factors that we can never account for, situations that even in our wildest dreams or scariest nightmares could we scheme up. And the fact of the matter is, at the end of the day, the mountain/ocean/rock/trail/piste/couloir will be there. However, if we don't take care of our brothers and sisters, they might not. And is summiting a mountain really worth a human beings life? I honestly do not believe so.

Sorry for the somber commentary, but I had to share.

lilwaldo