Fish Out Of Water
Sat 21st April
The challenge looms before us, ever present on the corner of our consciousness. Seductive in it's notoriety, intimidating in it's elusiveness, we formulate our plan of attack...
The team gather early, as mist fills the city bowl. Shadows of doubt creep in but are quickly dispelled as we set off, ready for whatever the day might bring!
We reach the start point, and stand face to face with... TABLE MOUNTAIN!!
Ok, so it wasn't really that dramatic. People from all over the world do this everyday. But climbing the mountain still proved to be an accolade not easily won, and I am significantly chuffed with myself for having not only got myself up to the highest point (1086 m I believe) but also walked around on top and then got myself all the way back down again (ignoring the lure of the cable car!). A day is significant when you learn something, particularly about yourself, and this day showed me that beyond all doubt - I am not a mountain goat.
Climbing and hiking do not fulfil me in the way they do others. I can appreciate the beauty and splendor of mountain ranges, I can be inspired and awe-struck by rugged cliffs jutting out into the sea, and the biologist in me can be intrigued by the various species encountered whilst communing with nature but I do not feel this insatiable call to scale the heights of mountain upon mountain for the pure sake of it. I will occasionally answer the challenge - Table Mountain is one of those that proved too alluring to ignore - but I will tackle them at my own pace. Slowly but surely, as the proverbial tortoise, bringing up the rear and contemplating why on earth I started this mad journey. This only adds to the achievement in my mind... I just don't feel at home on the rocky slopes of a mountain.
Give me the continental shelf any day! Below water I feel a freedom and a curiosity that tugs at my heart and calls to my soul. I don't really mind where I dive (temperature aside) as those first few seconds descending into the blue calm my mind and allow me to breathe deeply in my spirit once again. Every dive brings me back to the same place where I can re-focus, even if it is only for those few seconds. And every dives deepens the hold of the ocean on my life.
Which is why I remain, unashamedly an ocean fish. Not a mountain goat.
The challenge looms before us, ever present on the corner of our consciousness. Seductive in it's notoriety, intimidating in it's elusiveness, we formulate our plan of attack...
The team gather early, as mist fills the city bowl. Shadows of doubt creep in but are quickly dispelled as we set off, ready for whatever the day might bring!
We reach the start point, and stand face to face with... TABLE MOUNTAIN!!
Ok, so it wasn't really that dramatic. People from all over the world do this everyday. But climbing the mountain still proved to be an accolade not easily won, and I am significantly chuffed with myself for having not only got myself up to the highest point (1086 m I believe) but also walked around on top and then got myself all the way back down again (ignoring the lure of the cable car!). A day is significant when you learn something, particularly about yourself, and this day showed me that beyond all doubt - I am not a mountain goat.
Climbing and hiking do not fulfil me in the way they do others. I can appreciate the beauty and splendor of mountain ranges, I can be inspired and awe-struck by rugged cliffs jutting out into the sea, and the biologist in me can be intrigued by the various species encountered whilst communing with nature but I do not feel this insatiable call to scale the heights of mountain upon mountain for the pure sake of it. I will occasionally answer the challenge - Table Mountain is one of those that proved too alluring to ignore - but I will tackle them at my own pace. Slowly but surely, as the proverbial tortoise, bringing up the rear and contemplating why on earth I started this mad journey. This only adds to the achievement in my mind... I just don't feel at home on the rocky slopes of a mountain.
Give me the continental shelf any day! Below water I feel a freedom and a curiosity that tugs at my heart and calls to my soul. I don't really mind where I dive (temperature aside) as those first few seconds descending into the blue calm my mind and allow me to breathe deeply in my spirit once again. Every dive brings me back to the same place where I can re-focus, even if it is only for those few seconds. And every dives deepens the hold of the ocean on my life.
Which is why I remain, unashamedly an ocean fish. Not a mountain goat.
posted by Susie at
4:53 AM
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