The mainstream audience has a certain picture of what climbing is all about: man conquering mountain. But you can't conquer a mountain, though it may conquer you.
Interpretation
Climbing mountains is not about conquering them, but rather about the experience and challenges they present.
Jimmy Chin suggests that the popular perception of mountain climbing as an act of conquering nature is misguided. Instead, he emphasizes that mountains are powerful forces that can humiliate and overwhelm climbers, and that the true essence of climbing lies in the journey and personal growth rather than mere triumph over physical obstacles.
In practice
During a motivational speech about adventure and personal growth.
On climbs, there is a general way we manage fear. We look at things objectively, separating out perceived risk from real risk. You can really bring down the level of fear by knowing the real risks and setting aside the others. You also know that panicking just makes things worse.
You learn over years of expeditions that having faith, and putting one foot in front of the other, you do end up pulling off climbs that seem completely impossible. There's a certain beauty to that. It has an allure.
You do wonder - when you are at 28,000 feet, the height that aeroplanes cruise at, when you are struggling to draw breath and every limb aches - why do I do this?
The two great risks are risking too much but also risking too little. That's for each person to decide. For me, not risking anything is worse than death. By far.
Becoming a parent has changed the risk calculus for me. But it might be age, too, and seeing a lot of friends die in the mountains. Will I take the same risks I took in my 20s? Probably not, but I will always push myself in the mountains.
It's hard to take people seriously who say you're totally irresponsible if you go out and climb mountains when you have kids, because they clearly don't understand the circumstances. You can't impose your own acceptance of risk on other people - that's not fair.
Nature has neither kernel Nor shell
Nature never deceives us; it is we who deceive ourselves.
I think the environmental problem will be the number one item on the agenda of the 21st century... This is a problem that cannot be postponed.
Anyone who has chanced like me to roam through desolate mountains and studied at length their fantastic shapes and drunk the invigorating air of their valleys can understand why I wish to describe and depict these magic scenes for others.
I want us to know our world. If I lived in North Georgia on up through the Appalachians, I would be just as crazy about the mountain laurel as I am about [Texas] bluebonnets.
Pay attention to the beauty surrounding you.
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