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I think one of the most memorable times in my life that taught me a lot about myself was the summer I spent in South Africa. There was a time we all went to Table Mountain in Cape Town. Total, there were probably about ten of us in our group for the climb. It was extremely windy that day, so we had to head out early to get there before it were too dangerous to let people climb. We all embarked on this journey together, but about 20 minutes in, I realized I couldn’t keep up with the group. I wasn’t terribly out of shape, but definitely not as in shape as they were, as they were in SA for sports coaching, so exercise had been in their daily regimen for quite some while. I remember them leaving me. I called out for someone to stay with me, but they told me no and went on their way. I don’t quite remember the exact excuse was, but I remember panicing as I realized I would have to embark on this journey by myself.
So there I stand; in the middle of South Africa, to climb up a mountain alone. In the beginning I felt somewhat sad and ostrisized. Flashbacks of being the one no one wanted, the one no one wanted to play with or talk to.. all these memories started flooding back. But I kept climbing. A half hour of this, I almost gave up. It was then that my saddness was replaced with anger. Anger that they had left me. Anger that I trusted these people, anger that it had no started raining and the rocks were slippery. Walking down was subsequently more dangerously than walking up.
You see, when you reach a certain point in table mountain, you are literally above clouds. Suddenly, the scenery gets grey and the wind begins to pick up as you get higher and higher. Eventually, it’s like walking through a mist of rain, wind and terror. I stopped for a moment to record a video.
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Climbing table mountain
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By this time, I was determined. All I could think was in metronomic rhythms. Climbing the rocks, I kept saying to myself one..two..one..two; almost robotic– trying to concentrate on anything but the situation I was in. I paused every ten minutes to catch my breath. The climb was pretty steep; I had clearly underestimated the hike by wearing jeans. About every fifteen minutes or so as people would pass some professional climbers, others in similar situations; they would encourage me to not give up. They saw that I was struggling. Some stayed with me to catch their breath, but they kept giving me positive messages and told me to stay hopeful. “Don’t give up, you’ve got about forty five minutes left!” … “You’re almost to the top! Just keep climbing!” I suddenly went from angry to determined. I knew my situation, but there was nothing I could do to change the fact that my group left me or that I couldn’t keep up. I had to accept this reality, but I had to change my mentality. I was going to climb this mountain. That was the final goal.
After what seemed like an eternity of climbing, a woman who seemed nonamature was walking down. “You’re about five minutes from the top,” she said with her warm British accent. She may as well have told me I had won the lottery.
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Once I got near the top, it was the most magical, breathtaking, exuberayting experience I have ever felt. My endorphins were so high due to the physical climbing I had been subdued to for the past 2 hours. The clouds were so light, but I was at the light at the end of the tunnel. It was so beautiful. There was a peace and calm as you could hear the trickle from the rain hitting the puddles. The pathway to the top was a bed of rocks and there was a glow near the top.
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Climbing up Table Mountain
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I believe everything that happened that day happened for a reason. Some reason greater than anything I could even fathom. Or maybe it was all just chance events that I somehow subconsciously made into a lesson for myself. Either way, the experience was life-changing and has had such a huge impact on my life and my current ways of thinking. I learned several things in this one instance that I will carry on throughout my entire life. One, the importance of support. Had it not have been for the people cheering me on and encouraging not to give up, I’m not sure how far I could have made it. I genuinely believed these strangers were there looking out for me because we all had the same goal of climbing up the mountain. The second lesson I learned was perseverance. Had I have given up when the group first let me, I would have never climbed the mountain, and would not have such an awesome story to share. Even when the task at hand seems like climbing a mountain, if you persevere and take it piece by piece, you will get to the top. And getting to the top was one of the most magical experiences I have ever witnessed. And the third and final message I learned was hope. Before I left for South Africa I was very unsure of where I was going, what my career path should be, who I am as a person; all anxieties of being a young adult. Climbing this mountain gave me confidence in myself. It was tangible proof that I could do something if I put my mind to it. And that is the message I wish to convey to anyone reading this entry. A lot of the “problems” we face may be more psychological than actual physical barriers. If you can somehow get in to your mind and detrermine what are factual barriers and what are nonfactual barriers, I would imagine you’ll be able to conquer the world. Just don’t give up.
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