April 2003, the Rockrats sent a series of posts on their individual perspectives on rock climbing. I will be posting them over the next few days. Here is the first one from Capulettes:
I believe that everyone we meet, every opportunity taken or missed is part of a large picture of life that we cannot see yet. Every action we decide to take and every person we meet has a role to play in our lives. I don’t believe in coincidence.
For example in my case, climbing is part of weaving the larger picture of my life. I started climbing when my uncle had an ex-girlfriend who was a very good climber. They took me to Nanyang to climb. I got hooked because to me it was exciting and something different that not everyone does. Now neither my uncle or his ex-girlfriend climb anymore.
Through climbing I got to know you guys, and my friend here in UK which is the reason I am here now enjoying life. Without him I wouldn’t be here today, and being here in UK backpacking is a life long dream.
Through climbing I met Holdbreaker in Genting who assisted me in preparing for my back packing trip, without Holdbreaker I could have still made it over here but I wouldn’t have been fully prepared. Through Holdbreaker I met you guys. Through climbing I met this guy in summit who advised me in applying for a Working Holiday permit. Without this permit I would have not be able to work here legally which may cause me problems in the future. Through Summit Gym I got to know about the MATTA fair which saved me about RM1800 on my flight ticket which is a heck lot of money.
Through Holdbreaker, you guys met me and I introduced you to climbing in Penang and Gua Kelam. It’s not a big deal but it adds colour to climbing for you guys. As you guys know from climbing with me I am not hardcore. Most of the time, I laze around rather than climb but for those of you who understands me, that is the way I like it. I take my time, absorb the environment, get in the mood then I do it.
To me rock climbing is not only about climbing a rock. Rock climbing to me is split between relaxing, meeting people, going to new places, appreciating nature, appreciating the rock, appreciating life, having a good laugh, spending time with a bunch of crazy people, learning new things (like organizing trips, being a leader, being careful, gaining the ability to think under pressure when leading a hard climb, thinking rationally about taking risks). I enjoy it better this way. To me climbing is only 30% of the whole process.
What ever happens after this trip is another story, but to me climbing is just a small part of a big picture of my life. At this point I believe that climbing is meant to be part of my life from the very beginning.
The saddest part of this trip is that you guys are not here to share climbing with me. Every site I go to I think to myself something like, “Hey, Thin Man would love this,” or “Hey Combat Girl would go crazy with this.” Since sandstone climbs have no bolts, it also crossed my mind, “Hey, Fearless can’t step on bolts anymore!” And I was laughing to myself.
Anyway, I am glad to have known you guys…..
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