As he filled his 85 liter pack with climbing gear such as: mountaineering boots, base layers, hand warmers, extra socks and gloves, food and a couple of Nalgene bottles, he realized that redundancy would keep him alive during the harshest of conditions spent on top of a mountain. His stomach was tied in knots at the thought of summiting the tallest peak in the continental United States. It was a healthy concoction of excitement and anxiety. Staring up toward the peak exceeding 14k feet, the thought rushed into his mind, "How will I do this? There's so much to climb. Will I have energy? How will my lungs withstand the lower atmospheric pressure?" As he pondered these questions due to sheer nervousness, he noticed a patch of purple flowers nearby. He bent down to observe this natural beauty and stillness. The climber became appreciative toward the plant and how it decided to defy gravity by growing vertical, reaching its pedals toward the sun. The lesson taught to him was to live in the present and observe the small things. After all, looking up at the summit may have caused unnecessary intimidation, whereas focusing downward and noticing the small would have gotten him to the top more steadily and confidently. This story I completely made up has some relevance to life. Do not focus on the entire picture, but take a piece at a time by noticing the small and being grateful for it. How is it possible to show gratitude toward the small? Consider your perceptual interpretations. What is it like to listen to yours rhythmic breaths, much like an ocean side, before bed? What does the air feel like as it drifts across the salt flats of your arid skin? What are the scents infiltrating your nostrils and how do you determine one from the other? What does an apply really taste like and its texture feel like moving along the top of your tongue? When you see a tree move due to wind, what does it look like? Perceptual interpretation of the real, not the illusory. Our senses are consistently masked by illusions created to stimulate us to make us feel good inside. When this occurs, our natural senses of the small become numb. We lose the conviviality of our animal senses. What is it like to reach out your hand and feel the texture of the bark on a tree? When you touch its waxy, green leaf what do your senses tell you? Have you thought that perhaps the leaf felt your touch and perhaps through a series of chemical reactions it was also sensing the texture of you?
I believe when we shut off the distractions in life such as: social media, cable TV, ads, radio, etc. we are free to be human again. By becoming aware of our perceptual interpretations, we become aware of nature again. Nature. Something humankind has progressively lost connection with due to progress. And, with human progress and advancement comes a penalty and the penalty is against the natural world. Our real home. Mansions, sports cars, fancy dining, excessive consumption is all illusion. It's an illusion of luxury because that's what separates us from being cold, naked and trying to survive. But, this too has turned us more into machines. Before the discovery of fossil fuel utilization for energy, humankind was the master of reciprocity. A gentle exchange and mutual connection with the environment. Unfortunately, this has been perverted and distorted into what seems to be an unstoppable military-industrial complex. Let's take a step back to our senses. If we can revert to becoming more aware of ourselves, we then have the capability of being more grateful and compassionate toward what nature has to offer. Let us remember, we are not the only inhabitants of Earth. We share it with a multitude of amazing species that also have perceptual interpretations, like us. This ties us together as earthlings, as family, and reminds humans of becoming more animal again.
My training for Mt. Rainier is going rather well. I train about 5-6 days a week consisting mostly of 25-30% incline walking with a 50 lb pack. Some other exercises I perform consist of TRX suspension training, many many pullups, running, breath holding, etc. The climb is in late February, so I'm hoping to be in the best shape of my life for this climb. I'll be doing some practice climbs in Colorado prior to the big one!
Regards,
X