Touch the Top of the World

Winter storm Rocky has been a heavy hitter today here in Thornton, Colorado. Which is a great thing, especially when I have been meaning to finish the book that I have been reading for the past week. The book is authored by a man whom I had the absolute pleasure to listen to last fall in Lander, Wyoming as he told his his inspirational life story.

"Despite losing his vision at the age of 13, Erik Weihenmayer has become one of the most celebrated and accomplished adventurers in the world. Re-defining what it means to be blind, Erik has opened up the eyes and minds of people around the world. In 2001, Erik became the only blind climber in history to reach the summit of Mount Everest. In 2008, he completed his quest to climb the Seven Summits – the tallest peak on each of the seven continents. Since then, he continues to inspire others through actions and deeds." (http://www.touchthetop.com/About-Erik.aspx)

When he spoke in Lander, he relayed that there are three types of people in this world: the quitters,campers and climbers. When we face adversity we have one of three choices, to quit our endeavor and give up on the goal; to camp and stay stagnant or to move forward through the challenge and journey onward. Through his book he exemplifies what it is like to be a climber, both theoretically and physically.

His book is entitled: "Touch the Top of the World: A Blind Man's Journey to Climb Father Than The Eye Can See". Being an outdoor enthusiast myself, I was attracted to his story, but having such a immense impairment and thriving with it, made reading his book an inspiring adventure.

Of the many things that I enjoyed about reading this book, I think his humor was the most heart-warming and inspirational. He never lagged in wit and his fellow climbers certainly kept up with wit and humor, even when faced with difficult challenges and decision-making. To illustrate: while attempting to climb Aconcagua, the tallest mountain in South America, the winds were too strong to attempt summiting for several days. Throughout these days the team maintained patience and cultivated their humor. One of his buddies, "Chris, was famous for practicing an attitude he called  'positive pessimism'. 'It sure is cold, but at least its windy.'". . . to which Eric responded "It sure is dusty, but at least there are rocks in our food."

This realistic and funny way of phrasing things makes me smile and realize that it wasn't sarcasm that they were using. They really did love these things, their team (and Eric is especially evidence of this), loved challenge and veiwed things not as a quitter or camper would, but as true climbers.

Please check out his site to learn more about Erik Weihenmayer and his inspirational journey. www.touchthetop.com