Sunday times is bloggin' times

I realize that I have posted something new for the past three days, but I have so many thoughts and ideas bouncing around in my head that I just have to set them free. Since the only thing occupying my time is work, I find myself having quite a bit of free time. And that's when my brain starts to fly.

I am reading a book my sister recommended to me: Three Cups of Tea, by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin. It is about a man that builds schools for children in Pakistan and Afghanistan, but I haven't got that far yet. The first few chapters are about his attempt to reach the summit of K2. The author describes in great detail Mortenson's surroundings as he crosses the unfriendly terrain that surrounds the Karakoram Range in Pakistan. The descriptions of that land and mountain range intrigued me, so I looked up some pictures.

Now, I'm not a mountain climber by any means, and I hate heights. I have a hard time with ski lifts, let alone a towering, unforgiving mountain. But when I saw images of K2 and the Karakoram Range, I was stunned, and I now understand part of the appeal of extreme mountain climbing.

I've seen dozens of pictures of Mt. Everest, and heard countless stories of the amazing and terrible journeys that have been had on that mountain. The pictures of Mt. Everest are beautiful, but they did not affect me like these images did. Perhaps it's because the gorgeous images of K2 contrast so greatly with the conflicts and struggles that have occurred and are occurring in Pakistan right now. Perhaps it's the nature of the mountain, or the way in which the photographer captured the shot. Whatever the reason, these pictures I found really affected me.

K2

Masherbrum Peak

Mt. Kinabalu

I love nature. I love being outside, experiencing the wonders of this Earth. My spirit feels closer to heaven when I'm in the mountains, sitting by a lake, watching a magnificent sunset, etc. I love to simply sit outside and drink in nature in all of her forms--except for mosquitoes, moths, bugs, spiders, flies, poison ivy, poison oak, thistles, etc. If I ever had the opportunity to visit a grand, magnificent mountain peak such as K2, I would go in a heartbeat, just to stand at it's base (where it's safe and at ground-level) and let it's magnificence enfold me.