Having nashta(breakfast) on Shasta was the goal but to say that Shasta chewed us up for breakfast would not be a stretch.
“Its not the destination but the journey that counts”, or “whatever place you go, you take some of it with you and leave some of you behind“ or “its not visiting a new place but seeing the place you visit with new eyes that counts” are all pithy sayings and they held true for this climbing expedition as well. Yet, one always seeks to delve, beyond the cute sayings. We just want to dig a bit deeper into the experience and visit realms yet unexplored by our senses. Towards that end, a couple of dozen nut-jobs friends, a frozen mountain and a few days of partial solitude was just the right recipe, as it turned out on this trip.
The Rookies, the rookies…
This group like many others had its set of rookies. Rookies on a mountain are delightfully pure people, unadulterated by any real fear or concern. Not having a clue of what to expect has its advantages after-all.
The really adorable part is always the sheer enthusiasm, laced with blissful ignorance that these bright eyed bushy tailed darlings carry. These souls, god bless them, get suckered into the enterprise by the mesmerizing confidence of someone in the group who answers most of their questions by, “don’t worry, its gonna be fine”. That phrase, is a potent tranquilizer of reason and logic. The logic that says that my legs need to carry me further and higher, with more weight on my back than they have ever carried before, in frigid conditions, in the wilderness. Not having done any of the training and preparation should technically be a cause for alarm. Yet that alarm quickly gets muffled in the “comfort food” of shopping and fitting for the right gear, that matches the personality of the newbie in color and style. “This black jacket and red backpack.. and these fabulous shades are soo me”, is a powerful antidote to reason on such expeditions. This trip wasn’t any different.
Rookies are also delightful to be around. I was one too, not so long ago. Nothing seems to faze them, until they step foot on the mountain. They just need baptism by fire and Mount Shasta obliged. Thank god for rookies though. Without them there would be no experienced climbers either, if you get the drift.
Then there were the rest who had the house in order somewhat, in terms of either the gear or the legs. Shasta started talking to most of us though after Mount Helen which was at 10,200 ft. Some even got to higher reaches. So, in its own language the mountain became our coach, kindly yet firmly letting us discover ourselves on that day.
The Views, the views..
The sheer joy and comfort of being in nature is not lost on any of us. On a trip like this, there is an endless buffet of incredible views and vistas, of nature all around you unfolding and blossoming in wildly diverse ways. Its as if a deluge of the new sights and sensations visit you. It is inconceivable for anyone unless, in the middle of it. Also, as if on cue, in a curiously deliberate way, these sights and sounds drown out all anxieties one carries, except the one associated with living and surviving the experience at hand. It gently yet firmly folds all our senses in the present moment. All the dimensions of the beauty of the wilderness, the effort of pushing forth and risks of being on the mountain come alive. The present moment becomes vibrant and real and speaks more loudly than it has spoken ever before. Whether that happens while watching the brilliant night sky bursting with starlight or in the effort of pushing forth with limp legs, the present moment speaks. This is such a far cry from our normal life where we are barely even aware of the present moment, our conciousness steeping in some real or imagined past or anchored in some opaque future. In that sense, climbing brings us so effortlessly into a meditative repose. Step by step, one breath at a time, in the dark of night, us by ourselves, step by step, one breath at a time. It’s a powerful way to experience life in its fullness and richness. Experiencing life in the the way it comes to us too, one moment at a time.
Friends, so many friends..
As a parent, one learns that the identity of a child really starts breathing on its own, when the child starts calling upon someone as their friend. Whether in a playdate at preschool or as a teenager in highschool, “friends” are the primary path to self realization for a child. That she matters, that she has her own place in the world, that she means something, all comes to bear in life through the existence of friends. They are the branch that the bird hops to, upon leaving the Mom and Dad branch. In other words friends have an elemental place in providing us with a sense of well being. Their critical role in the expression and assertion of our identity cannot be overstated.
That indulgence is not just a childhood phenomenon however. It continues on throughout our lives as it did through this trip as well, except on steroids this time. What an unbelievable array of friendships getting strengthened, bonds being formed, right in front if our eyes we saw. Some of us will realize many years later, the impact someone had on their life through this trip. It happens on each such adventure.
When someone, who does not have to, stops for you in blistering microwave mid day heat on the snow-packed mountain, just to share some water or comfort, it registers on your psyche. When someone takes the bag off your back or shares some water or food or help, when you don’t have the strength to, it registers on your psyche. When someone looks to the sky, right alongside you and sees a tumult of stars just painting the heavens in starlight, it stays with you. When someone even while nursing their own hurts, steps up to care for you, it is not lost on you. So yes, old bonds got strengthened, and new ones got formed, in ways that are too numerous to count.
With all this and a little bruised ego, the mountain sent us back. We were not yet ready to taste the manna of the summit it said. You need to prepare more.
We all know though that the message was enveloped in love, that nature knows how to dole out, like a firm parent. If you only care to indulge her. If you only care to be with her.
That, friends was our story of Mount Shasta.
