Writing, Climbing, Life

Something that I really like about writing is the revision process. When you start an essay, the first draft tends to be too big, too long, and too wordy. The ideas don’t flow, and in turn, the big concepts aren’t communicated as clearly as they could be. But you make fixes and adjustments. You rework sections. You remove phrases. Eventually, you are left with only the pieces that add value to the composition. It’s hard, but a finished essay can be so satisfying. Nothing is more beautiful than a complex concept that is clearly and concisely communicated in just a few simple, digestible paragraphs.

Every word has its purpose.

A climbing project works a lot like this too. The first time up, you grab everything in sight. You don’t want to miss any key beta, so you make sure to try it all. At first, the moves don’t flow well into each other, and you end up doing too much work for too little gain. But you rework sections. You rethink sequences. You remove holds from your beta. Eventually, you climb only what is necessary to reach the anchors. It’s hard, but a send can be so satisfying. Nothing is more beautiful than a difficult climb whittled down to its simplest form.

Every move has its purpose.  

Lately, I’ve been going through a period of revision in life too. Days, seasons, and years didn’t flow well. My life felt like it had become complicated and cluttered. I had relationships that brought too much unhappiness, and it was hard to see a clear purpose to the effort of every day. Since my last draft, I’ve made several changes. I’ve rid myself of a house, a smartphone, and almost all of my belongings. I've ended a marriage. I’ve kept the things that add value to my life, removed the things that made me unhappy, and moved into a van.

In life, I think the search for that finished essay, that send, or that final state of happiness isn’t valid. Your life is more of a novel in constant need of revision, expanding or contracting based on the situation. There is no finished product – only a hope that your latest revision is one that you could die happy with.

Revision is hard, but it can be so satisfying. Like an essay, and like a climb, there’s nothing more beautiful than a life simplified down to just the pieces that are most meaningful.

Everything has its purpose.

Your Life is Happening: Math and Climbing (Part 2)

I imagine you've heard a student ask, "When am I ever going to use this in life?" in a math class. Maybe you nodded in agreement... maybe the question came from your own mouth... or maybe this sentiment still echoes in your mind in the form of nightmares about your days in school. It's a fair question though, isn't it? Yet educators often react quite viscerally to it.

Cartoon owls are always so smart...

Having been asked "When in life will I ever use this?" myself, I know that the question is more often a display of a defeatist attitude than that of true curiosity. I sometimes imagine climbers training in the gym asking a similar question. "Why do I have to hangboard -- it's boring!" or "When will I ever need to campus from rung 1 to 3 to 5, and then back down?" or "When will I ever have to do a sit-up?" When put into a slightly different context, the question "when will I ever use this in life?" seems absurd on many levels. 

So what's the difference between the math student and the training climber in regards to this question? Choosing to be there is the first big distinction. While climbers are training to improve at their chosen sport, most students probably don't take full ownership of their choice to become educated by attending high school or college. Unfortunately, an education is more often about meeting social expectation than obtaining self-fulfillment. Another distinction is respect. We've all learned about climbing from a super strong friend or our favorite professional climber's blog. But most folks don't have a math sensei. In fact, many of our friends and parents would probably say that they don't like math. And to be honest, not too many math teachers are walking around with cool points falling out of their pockets. 

I think that he should be able to handle this lecture without referencing his book...

There's usually a good honest answer to the question of why we learn the math that we learn in school. Most math classes are a balancing act. For example, I'd say a typical College Algebra (or algebra 2) class is about 10% real world application, 65% preparation for Calculus, 20% critical thinking, and 5% art.

But the question "when in life..." misses the most obvious point. It's important to realize that what is happening to us right now is, in fact, life. Life is not something we have to wait on graduation to begin. We don't need to have a new job, a new car, or a new relationship to start living.

And we have a lot of control over our lives! If you choose a life that puts you into a math class, then at the very least you're expected to prove to your future college/employer that you are capable of learning complex concepts. So...

Q: When in life am I ever going to have to use this?

A: This is your life. So right now.