The Chronicles of the Moment [1/3]
At Samaya, we're big believers in the power of storytelling. It inspires our choices of outings, climbs, bivouacs and trips, and indirectly changes our lives. As the year draws to a close and the cold sets in and the snow glistens, a whole new relationship with the mountains is taking shape. We'd like to share this new vision of the mountains with you through a series of chronicles. Let us guide you to reclaim the present moment by looking upwards, to that place we love so much, to that unique place where the ground stops to meet the starry sky.
CHAPTER 1: DREAM ABOUT IT
One of the particularities of mountaineering is the dream that precedes the action.As Gaston Rébuffat used to say: "The mountaineer is a man who takes his body where his eyes once looked". This quote is inspiring and applicable to all enthusiasts looking for a reconnection with nature. It invites us to raise our heads and go towards what makes us dream.
But what happens between reading a story, thinking about a mountain and the moment when we find ourselves in these places so dear, so desired, to meticulously prepare a platform to establish our shelter for one or more nights?
Even the greatest of winter achievements is born from a desire, which matures into a project, into deeds and finally into destiny.
This transition from dream to reality is often very personal and constitutes an ascent in itself. The journey from dream to fulfilment is not without effort. It requires passion, willpower and preparation with adapted equipment.
If there is only one step from desire to the project, it is still necessary to take it.
While it is eminently attractive and bewitching in this season, the mountain can also be inhospitable. Preparation is therefore crucial and also requires an excellent knowledge of oneself, both physically and mentally.
The writer and philosopher Gustave Thibon recalled at leisure that "to be in the wind is the ambition of a dead leaf". In order to fully experience an ascent, it is fundamental to dream it up yourself, rather than to respond to expectations and motivations that are not personal. This is where the intimate origin of the project takes on its full meaning: anchored in the depths of each person, experienced or not, it gives her/him the inner power to take this step from dream to action. The time spent in the midst of these natural cathedrals then stretches.
The most beautiful adventure story will never replace the experience of intense interaction with nature and it is never too late to take the plunge. An outdoor project carried by the power of a dream becomes an initiatory journey. What you keep inside you as you descent is an infinitely precious asset and the personal benefit associated with it is not necessarily proportional to the level of commitment.
If, with these few lines, we can give you the confidence and the desire to revive old dreams, whatever they may be, and to transform them into projects, then - no matter what anyone says - the end of the year will be the end of the moment.