Presence

Alex Honnold, 31, climbed El Capitan in Yosemite National Park June 3 with not one piece of supporting equipment.  Free Solo Climbing: no ropes, no protection, no fear?

I have watched and spoken with Free Solo climbers in the past and they are an interesting type of person.  They plan, the study, they prepare and train….in short, they beautifully obsess over a piece of nature and then climb it putting enough fear aside to typically make it to the top with ‘ease’.  This man made incredible, astounding history flying up El Cap’s 7,569 feet in just under 4 hours!  This climb takes most amazingly skilled climbers days to accomplish with protection, if not at least 24 hours!

Protection.  This is something to think about.  I never have wanted to free solo climb, not ever.  It has to be in your blood.

Protection is something we use in every aspect of life.  From defensive personalities to weapons.  Honnold is saying that although this life long goal was scary, fear does him no favors in his performance and so he says, ‘I set it aside and leave it be.”  He is so incredibly good at this skill that scientist/neurologists are studying his brain to see how he differs from the average Joe.

Does this take Training?  Faith?  A missing Amygdala?  I believe these answers are worth looking at, thinking about and sitting with for each individual person.  Fear separates, exhausts, ruins, kills, breeds hate and disease…. What are you afraid of, I mean truly afraid of and what Protection are you using in your daily life to run and hide from fear?

“All men should strive to learn before they die, what they are running to and from and why.”  James Thurber