What Do You See?
ADVANCE CONFIDENTLY!
“Don’t make a mountain out of a molehill there is a solution to every problem.” ~Anurag Prakash Ray
In life, over time, I have come to realize all events are neutral until we label them. Everything we experience or will ever experience, will be experienced, one day at a time. Life is perceived through the filter of what we bring to it. No two people see things exactly the same even when in full agreement on whatever it is they are seeing.
We are not machines and therefore, our emotions, our attitude, our confidence, our physical capabilities, our fitness, both physical and mental will all play their part in the way we perceive things. Our inherent nature, risk averse or risk prone, our ego, our pride, our fear, our humility, our concern for the well-being of others, selflessness or selfish, all will play their part in the decision-making process about what is and isn’t possible…
Mindset, belief, attitude, confidence, clarity, judgment, resilience, tenacity, grit, etc., these are the words used to describe the behaviors and actions of those who appear sure of themselves and their abilities.
Fear is not typically a word associated with the above list. The truth however is that most confident people feel the same fear as the individual lacking confidence. The difference is not in the fear they experience, but in their individual response to it. Confident people find a way to feel the fear and do it anyway. When they do it, whatever “it” is, they do it afraid!
For some, fear is paralyzing. For others it is exhilarating. For most of us, it is the common thread of the lived experience we each do our best to navigate. There is no all-inclusive instruction manual on how to manage fear. There are many theories, articles, and even books on how to manage fear, but the truth is, what works for one may not work for another.
If, however you are interested in one of the best manuals ever written, I highly recommend The End of Fear Itself by Steve Bivans which is available as a kindle read on Amazon for less than the cost of a gourmet cup of coffee. If you prefer a paperback you will have to separate yourself from $15, which is a bargain for a manual on unlearning everything you thought you knew about FEAR!
Some of us are defeated before we ever make the attempt. Some just know their natural limits and I have the utmost respect for them for they are bold enough to face the ridicule of those that might heckle them or call them a quitter, or even worse, make fun of them behind their back in private conversation.
It often takes more courage to say no than it does to say yes. I applaud those who consciously say no after weighing their options and measuring their choices against their abilities. Deep consideration for the safety of others, particularly strangers, is a rare quality indeed.
The climb from the bottom of the Half Dome trail departing out of Little Yosemite Valley to the top is approximately 2700 feet and about 3.5 miles of switchbacks, granite stairs, some of which are carved right into the rock, and standard steep ascent paths. It is a serious hike for serious hikers and a true test of patience and resilience.
Many casual hikers make the attempt as well. Some even succeed.
The casual hikers will be those starting as we did from Little Yosemite Valley because from the valley floor, Half Dome rises nearly 5,000 feet to a grand height of 8,839 feet!
For me, this hike was a test of my will. To begin with, it’s at altitude. It’s steep and requires a steadfast commitment to keep moving even when tired and short of breath. Determination and persistence are the words of the day…
When you finally make it to the top of the Half Dome approach, or what many refer to as the sub-dome, what you find waiting for your is a pair of cables suspended from poles that fit tightly into the drilled-out holes that await their replacement every year when the season reopens. (See picture below).
The final elevation gain on the cables is 400 feet of what sometimes feels like straight up, which translates to about a 50–60-degree slope! The poles are set about 8–10 feet apart with a 2×4 strapped to them to provide a little extra footing. The mantra was to go from board to board as you wait for the person in front of you to advance. Where it gets tricky is when you run into someone coming down at the same time as you are going up or vice versa. There is only so much room between the cables and cooperation from both ascenders and descenders is mandatory to navigate the journey safely!
As you can imagine, there is always one chucklehead in every crowd and for all of us it was Mr. Pink Shirt! He was overly impressed with his own ability to descend facing down the mountain rather than backwards and showed little concern for anyone who got in his way or was too slow to get out of his egoic charge down the cables… Fortunately, no one was hurt!
Where was I? oh yeah, the ascent…
When you finally reach the top, you are either exhilarated or terrified and I saw both this past Monday. The face of one of the ascenders I watched come off the final steps looked like one of those faces you see in a movie like Friday the 13th!
Fortunately, my friend Joe was at the top taking pictures and the one of me looks like someone who both felt and looked UNSTOPPABLE! (See Picture).
The view from the top is almost unimaginable… The meadow floor of Yosemite valley is thousands of feet below and everyone waits for their turn to get a picture taken on the promontory point! (Mine is Below).
After a leisurely break of about 20–30 minutes for hydration and a quick snack, the process of mustering the courage for the return trip down the cables begins.
It’s easy at first, facing forward, no problem, I got this and then the slope begins to change and the decision to begin the slow and methodical backward descent begins. As a descender, you must constantly be looking behind you which also means looking down to make sure you don’t run into anyone.
FEAR can be friend or foe and I found it best to embrace it as a friend. I said to fear; I AM Feeling Excited And Ready. I know I CAN Face Everything And Rise!
I did!
In the next article, I will give a little history of the area and discuss the Wawona Hotel and Restaurant where breakfast was thoroughly enjoyed the next day…
Did I mention the adventure was epic? Now I have! Until next time…
My name is Bobby. I am The Inspirationalist!
I inspire people to pursue their gifts!
If my words somehow inspired you to pursue your gift, then I succeeded…
Advance Confidently may still be the title of my next book, but it will not be coming out on the 4th of July as I originally anticipated. I have concluded the world doesn’t need another self-help book, at least not from me, so I am listening to my muse and will write a fable of self-discovery instead. I don’t know for sure when it will be ready, but what I do know is it will be worth the wait because that is my commitment to you, my readers. Thanks in advance for your patience!
In the meantime, I will be releasing a special audio short story on Twitter to commemorate my Independence Day and my 31st year of sobriety. You can watch for the story on the 4th. You can find me on Twitter @bobby_kountz
Keep Pedaling, Keep Going, Keep Growing!
Advance Confidently!
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In Gratitude,
Bobby Kountz, Author, Speaker, Sobriety Scholar, Inspirationalist!
PS. You can find out more about me here. You can find my book on Amazon.
