Earthquakes & Climbing Mountains

“The closer you are to death the more you realize you are alive.”

A series of earthquakes and tsunamis hit Japan yesterday, wiping out acres upon acres of farmland and rural homes. The footage on the news of cars, boats and tour busses being swept under bridges, and streets being pulverized with steady flows of water were disturbing to watch. None of the filming showed any people, except for one person waving a white flag from the top story window of a house surrounded by water for miles.

This was the first time I’ve ever had to evacuate my home to get to “higher ground” with the possible threat of a natural disaster. Grabbing my rain coat, iPhone, and the bottle of wine I was drinking, I headed to my friends place further inland. I knew I’d be safe, but I still couldn’t sleep. I couldn’t stop thinking about the unfathomable amount of debris being carried away into the ocean, the diseases being swept over Japan’s agricultural lands, and the people trapped in their homes watching their only food stuffs swimming around in their pantries and cabinets. I was wondering all night what was going through these peoples heads and if anyone was pondering whether or not surviving was actually a better alternative.

Last week I watched a movie about two climbers/mountaineers who were the first men to successfully climb Siula Grande in the Peruvian Andes in 1985 - Simon Yates and Joe Simpson. Both men successfully reached the top, but as they were on their descent Simon’s ice pick lost a grip and he ended up falling breaking his leg and knee. In an attempt to continue their descent, Simon was thrown off a ledge and left dangling for over an hour without Joe knowing what had happened. With no other option, he had to cut the rope, forcing Simon to fall over 100 feet into an ice crevice. Joe, thinking his partner was dead, continued down the mountain safely. Simon, who miraculously wasn’t killed, was able to get himself out of the crevice, solo, and return to base camp by dragging himself for over four days with no food or water. While he told his story, he mentioned the feeling of losing himself – that he was separate from his body and all other things in the material life. In a state of delirium, he felt that his “being” was just part of the world. He was even at the point where he was playing games with himself to see how far he could continue on – “just another 20 minutes” or “to that next rock.” On a larger scale, the journey seemed unbearable he said, but as he broke it into manageable pieces he was able to make it back to base camp alive.

What amazed me most about this story was the power he had over his mind. The control and self-discipline he had over his thoughts and body was unbelievable. After watching this documentary and hearing about the earthquakes in New Zealand, Japan, and all over the world, I am trying to shift my focus to a deeper practice of self-discipline and mind control. With this constant unease due to war, disasters, and unpredictabilities, the only constant I can control is myself, and with climbing I have learned a sense of control and discipline necessary to complete a problem. So whether it’s on rock, at home, or in the wake of a disaster, there is a calmness and self-motivation necessary to overcome the problems we face. Everyday I will continue on – “just another 20 minutes” or “to that next rock.” Otherwise – it’s just giving up.