Mountains are a metaphor for life
Just like life, mountains have peaks and valleys ups and downs.
On July 13 of this year retired doctor Art Ulene became the oldest person to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro in Africa. July 13th was his 90th birthday and it is the day he reached the summit at 19,341 feet above sea level.
He and his wife had previously climbed the mountain when she was 72 and he 75. Kilimanjaro is not as high or as dangerous as Mt Everest and it attracts over 30,000 climbers each year with a good safety record. It took Dr. Ulene 11 days to reach the summit and four days to come back down. A small birthday party was awaiting him when he reached the top.
His reason for climbing was to show people what’s still possible even in later life. At this elevation there is 50% less oxygen available and he had to rest between five and eight minutes each hour of climbing.
As reported in USA Today, he went on to say that “like life you just keep putting one foot in front of the other until you reach where you are going.”
Looking ahead to this winter and some new mountains he has already purchased a ski pass for Deer Valley in Utah and wants to focus on going down mountains instead of climbing up them.
Another person who loved the mountains and wrote a beautiful poem about them simply called “Mountain” was Henry David Thoreau. He also wrote a book in 1854 about his time spent at Walden Pond near Concord, Massachusetts where he sought out the simplicity of life. His themes in the book include learning to live with very little, trusting one-self instead of following society and, his greatest love, observing nature and trying to find the true meaning of our existence.
Unlike Dr. Ulene, Thoreau died at the young age of 44 from Tuberculosis.
Perhaps it’s important to find our own mountain or pond in life. What mountains are you waiting to climb? What is on your bucket list? If you are not willing to climb the mountain or hike the trail you may be missing so much of you potential.
Even if you can’t climb that mountain, perhaps a small hill or just a walk around the neighborhood can bring so much benefit and clear your mind as well as get one some exercise.
Find your pond and a place to sit and ponder what your life is all about.
Over 50 years ago we left the city and moved to the mountains and found our pond called Deer Lake.
Wow, what a journey!