Enthralling. Enlightening. Inspiring. Couragous.
Thank you, Snacking Bear.
It takes a certain type of bravery to be willing to put yourself out there physically, then openly speak of how it affected you emotionally. Mountaineering is an amazing story of love and loss, of the effort and drive to attain whatever goal we set out to achieve, then the acceptance that we may never stand in that exact spot again in this life. It is a story of friends, of teachers, of family, both short-lived and long. It is the story of struggle to find ourselves and how we can fit into or leave a mark on this time, as you say, "[the need] to matter".
I then realized that the reason I needed this accomplishment was due to the fact that I needed to appear a certain way to people. That my seemingly selfish and self-centered pursuit was orchestrated because I loved who it made me become. I was someone better who was better for other people, adored by other people, and inspire other people to greater things. There was a deep part of myself that wanted to be different than other so that I would have value in their eyes, and just as deeply, I needed to affect people.
Like I said, courage. Courage to know who you are, your own reasons for being out there. Courage to be able to express it. Courage to own it.
Thank you, Snacking Bear, for an incredible story. See you in the heights.
-Laura
