Don’t Go Climbing Mountains

Summary: Many years ago, my family was needing to purchase some supplies for an upcoming camping trip. So, we went to one of those giant outdoor outfitters in hopes of getting good prices on what can sometimes be rather expensive gear. Along the back wall of the store stood a 20-foot climbing wall. Now, twenty-something years ago, climbing walls like that were still a bit of a novelty and my oldest two kids, who were roughly five- and eight-years-old at the time, were all excited about giving it a try. Being adventurous parents who encouraged such activity, we signed the necessary paperwork and watched carefully are our children were strapped into the harnesses and given explicit instructions to only climb to the blue line that marked the half-way point. The expectation on everyone’s part was that the climb was difficult enough, and the children were small enough, that climbing ten feet would be sufficient. The kids started their trek upward and after watching for a minute, long enough for us to be sure they were reasonably safe, we went on about our shopping, happy that they would be occupied for a while. We were a few feet away, considering the merits of folding cots versus hammocks when we heard the annoying sound of an air horn declaring that someone had made it to the very top of the climbing wall. Looking up, we saw the smiling face of our five-year-old, sitting on top of the wall, smiling and waving. To say that both we and the store’s employees were shocked that the child had scaled the wall so quickly would be an understatement. He climbed back down on his own as well, rather than being lowered in the harness. When asked why he hadn’t stopped at the blue line as instructed, he said, “It wasn’t that hard, really. Once I started, I just kept climbing.” Of course, there was a mix of congratulations and admonition. While he had done something impressive, he had broken rules to do it. And then, I looked over at his older brother who wasn’t smiling. He had done exactly as he’d been told. He climbed to the blue line and then let the guide lower him. No one was congratulating him. I knelt down, gave him a big hug, and assured him that what he had done was just as important as what his brother had achieved. We emphasized that just because he hadn’t climbed to the top didn’t mean he was any less special. He had done well and had done it without breaking the rules. One of the places where I fear we fail with our children and society, in general, is that sometimes we make such a big deal out of climbing mountains that we overlook the fact that there may be better alternatives to making that effort and potentially putting ourselves in danger. We all face challenges and struggles in life, but we don’t all have to treat them as mountains to be conquered. It’s okay to play it safe, to take a different path, or not climb the mountain at all. We need to re-examine what motivates us to climb mountains and take a serious look at the alternatives. Not only may it make our lives easier, but we may also live longer. Everybody’s Climbing Mountains The metaphor of climbing mountains as a symbol for overcoming the struggles and challenges permeates our society. For old farts my age and older, you’re likely to remember the final song in the Rogers and Hammerstein musical, “The Sound of Music,” in which the Abbess challenges the Von Trapp family to “Climb ev’ry mountain, ford every stream, follow every rainbow until you find your dream.” The song is beautiful and many people have found it inspiring. A little more recently, it was only back in 2009 that a young Miley Cyrus sang, There's always gonna be another mountainI'm always gonna wanna make it moveAlways gonna be...

Don’t Go Climbing Mountains

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