05 Jun 2006 11:51 AM

Of Heroics and Heros

The woman that I was, in that life, would have been amazed at the news two weeks ago of the double amputee from New Zealand who heroically made it to the summit of Mt. Everest. Having lived in that world of adventure sports I would have been so impressed by his feat.

In the following days, the news that his climbing party, and many others, had passed a dying man on the way to the peak without stopping to help him would have sickened me.

I guess I'm not that different from the woman I was then.

When I participated in the all those adventure sports of my youth, leaving a member of our party behind, for any reason, was not something that would even occur to us. You went up with the members of your group and you came back down with them. As fast or as slow as your slowest member. It is the unwritten law for the outdoor adventurer.

Achieving a summit, especially such a historic summit as Everest is a sweet victory over our fears and our physical limitations. How can that achievement ever retain the delicate taste of triumph if you know that you abandoned a team-mate to die, just so you could see the view from the top? How can you claim your place in history with joy knowing that you stepped over an abandoned soul on your way to brief media stardom?

This past week Andrew Brash was within 200 metres of the summit of Mt. Everest. He and his team-mates came across a man, Lincoln Hall, who was near death, and who had been abandoned by his climbing party.

What thought went through Brash's head?

"I knew the climb was over..." Because the idea of just walking away from this man, a man who also had a wife and family waiting at home for him, never even occurred to him.

This is what shows the character of a man. This is the difference between heroics and actually being a hero.

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Nicole Humphrey (15757) 07 Jun 2006 06:41 AM

Aurora You completely moved me with that story. What a powerful well-written caption of what happened on the way to Mt. Everest. I have to agree that this man is the epitome of the word "Hero". We should all be so heroic in our efforts dealing with mankind. The world would truly be a better place. Thank you for sharing that incredible story.

Aurora (303) 07 Jun 2006 07:00 AM

Thank you for reading it Nicole. I have been following the stories of the climber on Everest this climbing season with a number of climbers from my area making the trip. Andrew's story moved me, and I wanted to share it. :-)