Purge To Surge

There’s a movie about some climbers summiting Mount Everest. Their guide told them when transitioning from Base Camp Two to Base Camp Three to back minimal items. He emphasized the importance of carrying only what was needed. “Be brutal, one pound down here is ten pounds on the mountain” or something like that. He wanted his climbers to lessen their loads as much as possible, without jeopardizing themselves or their task at hand.

In life, we’re the climbers. We carry all sorts of things, from childhood until death. The lessons of scarcity, fear, abundance, not being good enough, being too quiet, too loud, and all sorts of other things we picked up as we move up this metaphorical mountain. As we continue our ascend, climbing higher and higher, striving to accomplish more and more, those things we’d been carrying before become amplified. Intensified by the trials we face and the heights we’ve reached, our fear, our anger, our limiting beliefs begin to weigh us down in ways we could not have imagined or even had to deal with previously.

In order to continue our ascent up this mountain, we must purge. We got to be brutal like the movie scene. Those limiting beliefs, the fear and anger, and even the people have to be set aside or left behind. They served us well until that point, but to make our ascent, to get to our ultimate destination, we must purge.

After the purge, we surge. Our shoulders and minds freed from the burdens we’d been carrying, we surge forward. For some it’s a sprint, but the journey, the climb is still wrought with danger we can do more, in more challenging conditions than we could before, but the climb is still tough.

Later in the movie, there are a couple of scenes when you see climbers that didn’t make it to the top. They were left on the mountain. There’s another scene when climbers leave fellow climber behind. These tragedies illustrate something for us on our journey. Some won’t make it with you to the top. They won’t be around for your entire journey. You will not be able to continue with them and you will not be able to carry them. You will jeopardize yourself, your mission, and your destination will not be reached, should you choose to do so.

I’m still climbing. The air has gotten thin, it’s harder to breath, and it seems as if each step takes more than I possess. I’ve walked past some along my climb. I’ve left a left a few behind. Those climbing in high school or college or my first or second career have been purged. Others are being purged since the accident last year. I’m certain more will be left on the mountain. Purge comes from a Latin word meaning to clear away, cleanse, or to purify. Do that with those emotions, feelings, people, places, and things bogging you down. Clear away those things that will make your journey more challenging.

Today, Monday, February, 17, 2025, I am grateful that:

Almost all the items are out of my old place. I’m settled into my new place which is oddly familiar.

The weekend was restful. I haven’t been resting well, but this weekend, last night in particular, I rested well. Less on my mind and the reality of some of my decisions are being cemented into my mind.

Thi

This is the first part of the entry.